Pakistan, Saudi Arabia sign agreements for workers recruitment, skills verification

Islamabad: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed two agreements on Sunday, related to workers’ recruitment and skills verification programme of Pakistani workforce being employed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

According to Foreign Office spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmed, the signing ceremony of the agreements took place during the visit of Federal Minister of Education, Professional Training and National Heritage Shafqat Mahmood to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The agreement on workers’ recruitment will contribute toward further streamlining the process of export of workforce from Pakistan in diverse professions in the kingdom, while safeguarding their due rights and providing comprehensive legal protection to Pakistani workers employed in Saudi Arabia. The agreement will also help in resolving contractual disputes and taking legal recourse against recruitment offices, companies or agencies for any violation.

The agreement on skills verification will enhance the export of skilled and certified Pakistani workforce to the kingdom. It may be recalled that imparting modern skills and ensuring certification of Pakistani workforce to improve their employability abroad, were key areas among the Prime Minister’s Priority Sectors. Certification for our skilled manpower will create opportunities for technical workforce in Pakistan to get internationally recognized trainings and certifications.

Signing of these agreements paved the way for building strategic partnerships and complementary relations between various ministries and departments of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

In line with the vision of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, quality service delivery to the expatriate community remained a key priority of the ministry and Pakistan missions abroad.