Tanzania is seeking to expand employment opportunities for its citizens in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries through closer engagement with private recruitment agencies and improved coordination with destination countries.
Tanzania’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Zena Ahmed Said, held a meeting with private overseas employment agencies to discuss ways of increasing job opportunities, improving working conditions and strengthening the competitiveness of Tanzanian workers in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East labour market.
The meeting also focused on challenges facing recruitment agencies, the process of registering Tanzanians who secure jobs in Saudi Arabia and difficulties encountered by workers after arriving in the country.
The engagement is significant as overseas employment continues to provide an important source of income and opportunities for Tanzanians, while also exposing workers to challenges that require stronger institutional coordination and protection.
Ambassador Zena used the meeting to gather first-hand information from recruitment agencies on the obstacles they face in placing Tanzanian workers abroad.
Better coordination between Government authorities, recruitment agencies and employers in destination countries could help improve the recruitment process while ensuring that workers are properly informed about their contracts, rights and responsibilities before travelling.
Chairman of the Tanzania Recruitment Agencies Association (TRAA), Abdallah Mohammed, commended the Government for continuing to open up international employment opportunities for Tanzanians.
He said regular engagement between the Government and destination countries was necessary to improve the working environment for Tanzanians employed abroad.
“To improve the working environment for Tanzanians working abroad, it is important for the Government to maintain regular dialogue with those countries,” Mr Mohammed said.
The Middle East remains the largest overseas employment market for Tanzanians, making Saudi Arabia a strategically important destination for the country's labour export efforts.
For Tanzania, the challenge is therefore not only to increase the number of citizens securing jobs abroad but also to ensure that recruitment is transparent, workers are adequately prepared and mechanisms exist to address disputes or welfare concerns once they are in destination countries.
The meeting between the Tanzanian Embassy and recruitment agencies could provide a platform for addressing these issues and strengthening the role of private agencies in creating safer and more structured pathways into the Middle Eastern labour market.
