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AT Monitoring Desk
KABUL: A new migration system put in place through a bilateral agreement will enable more Afghan expatriates to become part of the UAE workforce, a top envoy said.
Ahmad Sayer Daudzai, Charge d’Affaires, Afghanistan Embassy in Abu Dhabi, said that soon, workers from Afghanistan will have a larger share in the UAE job market. As of now, the number ranges between 100,000 and 130,000, Khaleej Times reported.
“We have a bilateral labour agreement. It’s a World Bank-sponsored project. It will bring Afghan labourers to the UAE in an organised manner,” he told Khaleej Times. In the first phase, a total of 1,000 workers will be brought to the UAE.
“Based on this agreement, we will have managed migration of our labourers into various sectors of the UAE. We were set to implement the first stage of the agreement until Covid-19 situation stifled it for almost four months now. We will initially bring 1,000 workers here and slowly expand.”
He said the engagement during the repatriation of stranded Afghans has led to increased coordination and cooperation with the UAE government.
“Now, this agreement will be implemented even more effectively than we had thought,” the envoy added.
Daudzai pointed out that a sizeable labour force has left the UAE, offering a good opportunity for Afghan expatriates to join the country’s workforce.
“Earlier, the labour market was saturated. Now, as labourers have gone back, there will be a reset of the market. We are very hopeful that Afghan workers will have a larger share in the UAE labour market.” Daudzai also stressed that there is no shortage of skills and talent among the Afghan working class.
“Our graduation rate from the universities is one in 30, which is quite high for our region. Similarly, English language is quite prevalent in our society like India and Pakistan. There are no concerns on skills. Of course, on the job training will have to be conducted once they come here.
“The workers we want to bring here have the fundamental skills required to adapt to the job environment here. We are also hopeful that a lot of our workers will be able to find work again once the crisis winds down.”
