Over 100K Afghans to work in Saudi Arabia, UAE

KABUL (Tolo News): The program to send Afghan jobseekers abroad to countries under Khaeej territory has been finalized, and the first batch of workers will soon be sent abroad with work visas, the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs said.

Bashir Ahmad Tahyaj, the minister of labor and social affairs, said Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are interested in employing Afghan citizens, and work visas are being provided. Sending Afghan workers to Khaleej countries is a program that the Afghan Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has been working on for many years, but only now does the initiative appear possible.

Afghanistan’s Minister of Labor and Social Affairs said the program has been finalized and soon 10 thousand workers will be sent to the United Arab Emirates and 100 thousand workers will travel to Saudi Arabia. “We are trying to arrange the first flight of Afghan workers abroad in the year 1400, and this would be a revolution in the Afghan job market,” said Tahyanj.

Nevertheless, some Afghan citizens doubt that the process really has begun, and say the government has made such promises many times in the past. “The Afghan workers are going to Khaleej countries, Saudi Arabia, and other foreign countries because there is no work in their home country,” said Haqmal Masoudzai, a resident in Paktia province.

Paktia resident Ahmadullah Ahmad said: “This promise has not been fulfilled yet. The unemployment problem is getting worse day by day in the country. When there is no job for our workers, certainly they face economic challenges.” According to figures provided by international organizations, the unemployment rate has grown drastically in recent years in Afghanistan. As a result, a significant part of Afghan youth who are seeking jobs is striving to travel to foreign countries, even via illegal routes.

“One side is the visa problem, on the other side is even if they (workers) get visas, there is no work abroad. If there is work, surely it will not be very easy” said Zalmai, A resident of Paktia. According to figures provided by Afghan agencies, hundreds of thousands of Afghan workers are currently in the Khaleej countries, but most of them traveled with a passport from a second country, as most countries do not grant visas for Afghan passports.