Malawi labour export blues: Kuwait-bound youths sent back home

Barely a week after it was revealed that Malawi had no formal agreement to export labour to South Korea, the government has been thrown off balance by last minute indefinite suspension of exportation of labour to Kuwait, it has been reported.

The development, according to The Sunday Times, follows a sudden change to conditions for eligibility of Malawians seeking to work in Kuwait.

Labour Minister Eunice Makangala confirmed that government received communication with fresh instructions on who would be accepted to work in Kuwait and authorities send back home a group of 28 men and eight women, who were undergoing orientation in Lilongwe the past week.

“The change is due to fresh communication we have received from Kuwait. These are new developments. They want more people in other specified areas. You see, this is what happens when you are a beggar,” Makangala is quoted saying.

Kuwait, she said, now wants holders of passports that are not less than a year, aspirants’ full size photographs (and not mug shots) and proof of professional competence in accountancy, hospitality services, front desk jobs and motor vehicle driving.

“You know that Malawians obtain passports for a purpose, such that this demand is, in our view, not realistic. They also want that we provide full-view photographs of the people and not just passport size. The numbers, of course, will be more than 25 this time around,” Makangala said, adding that the government intends to argue its case on the issue of passports.

She further claimed that the Kuwait authorities wanted to take the workers in a chartered plane hence the need that the current group should wait until a reasonable figure was reached.

Besides Kuwait, Malawi also plans to export human capital to South Korea. The government is yet to formalise the labour export deal to South Korea.

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