Experts call for more training for migrant workers

Migration specialists have urged the Government to create an organized training programme for every Ugandan who plans to work abroad.

According to them, migrant workers would benefit from learning a variety of subjects throughout the training, including the fundamentals of the language and culture of the place they will be working.

A number of Ugandans have reported having issues with their employers when they travel for employment, particularly the girls who go to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Ambassador Francis Katana, the CEO of the Uganda Council of Foreign Relations (UCFR).

Every year, thousands of Ugandans travel abroad to do work, with the Middle East being one of the top destinations for migrant workers.

This, he stressed, is primarily due to a linguistic barrier and cultural shock.

This was during a high-level policy discussion on immigration governance, and diplomacy in Uganda hosted by the Uganda Council of Foreign Relations (UCFR) and the European Union on Tuesday (April 25, 2023) at the Fairway Hotel in Nakasero, Kampala. 

Uganda is slated to join the rest of the world to mark World Labour Day on May 1, 2023. Statistics indicate that about 700000 Ugandans graduate to complete about 70000 jobs available.

The protection of migrant workers, long-term training for people preparing to work in the UAE and other places, and the appointment of labor attachés at all Ugandan missions were the main topics of discussion.

If the Ugandan government wants to properly handle challenges related to labor migration, Katana emphasized that a comprehensive framework on migration must be developed.

“Last year we launched a research report and this is being followed by policy briefs with various stakeholders (Non-Government Organisations, government, and so on),” Katana added.

He emphasized that the goal is to assist the stakeholder in setting up a systematic and systemic migration governance framework.

A researcher with the Makerere Institute of Social Research, Grace-Edward Galabuzi, stressed that no one is opposed to Ugandans working in the UAE and other countries, emphasized the need for a comprehensive labor migration policy framework that also protects their rights.

“Some of these girls find cultural shocks because they do not know the language. The training here is only done by the private export companies for about a month or two weeks. We need to see more training of these people to be well prepared to avoid clashes with their employers,” he noted.

Remittances from Ugandans living outside the nation are estimated to be close to $1.2 billion annually.

“They have contracts with the companies, but those contracts are adhered to. The contracts require them to work for two years, six days a week, but very often these people have told us, they work seven days a week, or they work under conditions that are adverse,” he added.

Galabuzi reiterated the need for labor attaches to keep an eye on and monitor the circumstances under which “our people work” at this point.

This, he continued, would also assist determine whether they are being mistreated as many have claimed.

Uganda is slated to join the rest of the world to mark World Labour Day on May 1, 2023.

Unemployment statistics

Statistics from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) 2021 Uganda National Labour Force Survey show that at least 41% of Uganda's youth, or 9.3 million people, between the ages of 18 and 30, are not working in any kind of productive capacity. 

The poll reveals that none of these young people are enrolled in school, employed, or undergoing any training.

The survey also reveals that 21% of people aged five and older were working in subsistence agriculture, while 39% were engaged in other subsistence jobs, with 6.2 million children (or 40%) between the ages of five and 17 working as children, excluding household chores.

In addition, the study showed that unemployment had risen from 9% in 2019–20 to 12%.