Govt reacts to reports of Kuwait banning domestic workers from Uganda
The list of affected countries also includes Madagascar, Bhutan, Kenya, Nigeria, Togo, Malawi, Chad, Djibouti, Niger, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Cabo Verde, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, DR Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Angola.
When contacted on Wednesday, the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Aggrey Kibenge, said they were not affected by the reported ban since they do not clear workers to Kuwait.
KAMPALA - The Government has reacted to media reports of Kuwait prohibiting the recruitment of domestic workers from Uganda and 26 other countries.
Kuwait’s media reports captured by the Gulf News in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said on Tuesday (June 9) that the ban is part of its (Kuwait) efforts to strengthen oversight of the sector through revised administrative procedures and controls.
The list of affected countries also includes Madagascar, Bhutan, Kenya, Nigeria, Togo, Malawi, Chad, Djibouti, Niger, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Cabo Verde, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, DR Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Angola.
Media reports said the Kuwait Government, through its interior ministry, issued a circular restricting the recruitment of domestic workers to 10 approved countries, while banning recruitment from 27 others, as part of updated regulations governing the domestic labour sector.
Gulf News reported that under the directive, domestic workers may be recruited from South Africa, Benin, Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, India, Vietnam and Nepal, as well as Senegal, where recruitment is limited to male workers only.
Recruitment procedures will be completed through the country’s governorates.
The circular was distributed to residency affairs departments and service centres, and it took effect following its update two days ago, the Gulf News reported.
It added that for some countries, the restrictions apply only to female domestic workers, while the recruitment of males remains permitted.
Ugandan govt reacts
When contacted on Wednesday, the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Aggrey Kibenge, said they were not affected by the reported ban since they do not clear workers to Kuwait.
He added, “It means on our part that the people who go to Kuwait are not cleared by the Ugandan government. Those who go there must be going on their own and have not been cleared using our established system.”
Currently, Uganda has bilateral labour agreements with Middle East countries such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and UAE.
According to Uganda’s Ministry of gender, there were 742 Ugandan migrant workers in Kuwait as of May 2019, even when it (ministry) does not clear workers to that oil-rich tiny country nestling at the top of the Gulf.
The gender ministry says migrant workers in the Middle East contribute substantially to their families through construction of houses and paying of school fees.
As of May 2019, they were sending home about $600m (sh2.25 trillion), which accounted for about 50% of total inward remittances in Uganda.
And today, Ugandan workers in that region send approximately $822m annually, accounting for 32.89% of the country’s total remittance inflows.
Saudi Arabia contributes about $350m, with women making up approximately 84% of the migrant care and domestic workforce.