GCC countries to prioritize recruitment of Arabs over non-Arabs
Leaders of Arab Countries have been urged to take necessary measures to ensure that the Arab workforce gets priority over non-Arabs in the recruitment policy. This was the recommendation made by the participants in the Arab Forum regarding Development and Employment, which concluded yesterday in Doha.
Ahmed Mohammed Logman, the Director General of Arab Labour Organization, said that the Gulf States are currently trying to bring about a balance in their labour markets, which is otherwise dominated by Asian Workforce.
Following the series of riots and protests by Asian workers, all Gulf States are ready to create a balance in their respective labour markets by increasing dependence on Arab workforce. A trend is being adopted by Gulf States to give priority to Arabs over non-Arabs in their recruitment procedures, said Logman, when speaking to the media during the two-day meeting.
This new policy of recruitment is necessary for the next decade, as it will have dual benefit for the Arab countries, as the countries currently have surplus labour force, and it contributes to reducing the unemployment rates in few countries, while also rectifying the imbalance in the Gulf labour markets, dominated by the Asian-force, and hence, helps in maintaining their identity.
However, the new recruitment policy would prove to be worthless if it does not receive necessary support from Arab countries that send their citizens to Gulf.
Arab countries will also have to take up the responsibility of providing their citizens with the education and training required to meet the needs of Gulf labour market.
As for sponsorship system, the current sponsorship system may be replaced by a new system so as to organize the recruitment procedures in such a way that they do not have to depend on the sponsorship system, Logman said.
Posted on 18/11/2008