Officials here have opted to ignore reports of an impending ban on the recruitment of Sri Lankan female domestics in Saudi Arabia which could result in an annual loss of an estimated $75 million, saying the demand for workers in that category was still high in the oil rich kingdom.
Sri Lanka Foreign Employment Bureau (SLFEB) chairman K. Ranawaka told the Sunday Times Colombo was not taking the warning seriously since Saudi employers have not changed their interest in hiring Sri Lankan maids.
“The demand for local maids to that country is on a steady increase and there was no need to be alarmed”. He confirmed media reports on an impending ban but added that Colombo had not received any official intimation to that effect.
The Saudi media had quoted senior government officials as saying that such a ban was under serious consideration since Lankan maids were not adapting to the local culture and were getting increasingly involved in crime including infant murders, etc.
However, Association of Licensed Foreign Employment Agencies (ALFEA) secretary Faizer Mackeen accused the authorities of doing hardly anything to neutralize the threat and the ban could come at any time without warning.
He added that ALFEA was made aware of the impending ban by the Saudi Arabia National Association and Recruiting Organisation (ANARO), which was taking measures to discourage the ban.
“The issue here is not about culture and crime as the Saudi authorities wish to project it but something more serious linked with an agreement with the International Labour Organization (ILO),” Mr. Mackeen charged.
He said employers were not in favour of being covered by the ILO agreement which provides more rights among other benefits to the employees in keeping with international regulations.
Saudi Arabia is the single largest receiving country of Sri Lankan female domestics and at present there are an estimated 300,000 such workers employed, he added.
“If the ban is implemented it would be a body blow to the local industry and a huge loss in foreign remittance. At present foreign earnings from that country alone adds up to an estimated $75 million annually,” Mr. Mackeen said. |
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