Training centres set up :

More skilled workers for Middle East

by M.D. Rasooldeen

Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Minister Dilan Perera, who wrapped up a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia yesterday, said his Government is gradually shifting its manpower supply to skilled workers from its traditional dispatch of housemaids to Middle Eastern countries.

Perera, who conducted a road show in Dammam, said ensuring the rights and safety of lower skilled workers who work abroad has been a challenge. "The maidservants who come out for foreign employment face problems, such as (physical) harassment, delayed wages and breach of contract in the host countries while their families back home face serious socio-economic problems," the Minister said, adding that the Government is unofficially discouraging its citizens from taking up maid jobs abroad.

"We want to offer more skilled and quality manpower to the Saudi Arabian Kingdom and other regional job markets," he stressed. "We have well established training centres to update the prospective foreign workers with the required skills.

An innovative mechanism is currently being developed in Sri Lanka to implement job-specific, country-specific and company-specific training programs for citizens who seek foreign employment opportunities.

"We are resolving the problems of our migrant manpower and improve their welfare system, by introducing education scholarships to the children of Gulf returnees.

Work-related complaints such as employee or agent harassment, physical abuse, health challenges and issues of absconding maids have significantly come down at the Lankan missions in the Kingdom".

As a welfare measure for Lankan foreign workers, he said his Government is considering the allocation of a sizable quota for their students to enroll in the new private university which will come up soon in Colombo.

"With this program, we will attract foreign remittances from our nationals, thus helping our community too," he said.

The Minister, who visited deportation centres in the Kingdom's eastern province, said the repatriation process is being carried out methodically with the support of the Lankan mission in the Saudi Kingdom.