by Mariatou Ngum
A two-man delegation from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Monday, August 26th paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment (MoTIE) at his office in Banjul.
The delegation who were in the country on a two-day working visit met the officials of the MOTIE and other stakeholders to discuss modalities of the implementation of the Bilateral LabourAgreement between The Gambia and Saudi Arabia, signed last year, and also to discuss the challenges and chart way forward.
Receiving the delegation, Hon. Baboucarr O. Joof thanked them for visiting the Ministry. He informed them that the Bilateral Labour Agreement is now a national issue, noting that President Adama Barrow witnessed the signing.
According to him, upon returning home, the President went on tour and informed the citizens of this country that the government has signed an Agreement with Saudi and the people of the country would have the opportunity to go to Saudi and work either as professionals or as domestic workers but in a formal setting that will ensure their rights and dignity are protected.
Minister Joof urged his team and delegation to move faster so that by the anniversary of the signing ceremony of the Agreement they will already have some Gambians in Saudi Arabia.
On final note, he assured the delegates of the full support of the executive.
Permanent Secretary of MOTIE, Lamin Dampha affirmed that the meeting enabled them to jointly discuss modalities of the implementation of the Agreement.
“Everyone is looking forward to it,” he said while describing the longstanding relationship between The Gambia and Saudi Arabia as cordial.
Dr. Wafi Assiri, Strategic Partnership Director-Musaend of the Kingdom of Saudi expressed delight for being in the country and for the long-standing relationship between the two countries.
While acknowledging that their main purpose of visiting The Gambia is about the implementation of the Bilateral LabourAgreement, the Director said in general, their mission is to connect people not only just for Umra, Hajj, or visit but also opening new opportunities for work and business.
“We are proud to be part of this cooperation with your ministry. We are here to make final touches – to make sure that the system is in place and the recruitment starts soon,” he stated.
After the courtesy call on the Minister, the delegation had a meeting with the stakeholders and members of the Joint Technical Committee where they explained the whole procedure required to take workers to Saudi Arabia.
Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ismaila Danso chaired the meeting, noting that the purpose of the delegation’s visit is about the implementation of the Bilateral Labour Agreement including the role of private recruitment agencies in the implementation of the Agreement as well as the challenges and chart the way forward.
The Saudi-Gambia Bilateral Labour Agreement was signed last year at the sideline of the Africa-Arab Summit in Saudi Arabia. Two specific agreements were signed on the sideline of the conference: the Bilateral Labour Agreement for the Recruitment of Domestic Workers and the Bilateral Labour Agreement for the Recruitment of Skilled Workers. The Minister of Trade and his counterpart in Saudi Arabia signed the Agreement.
