Malaysia to provide jobs for 80,000 Lankans by 2006

BY P. Krishnaswamy

OVER 80,000 foreign job seekers will get lucrative jobs in Malaysia with prospects of huge job opportunities in the coming years, under their generous offer of unlimited job opportunities to Lankans, announced Labour Relations and Foreign Employment Minister, Athauda Seneviratne, at a media conference at the Ministry auditorium yesterday.

Job opportunities are availabale in the fields of construction, manufacturing, services, hotel industry, plantations and IT, the Minister said.

This was a sequel to the discussions the Minister had with the Malaysian Human Resources Minister during the recent convention of the ILO Governing Body, attended by all member nations in Geneva.

"Sri Lanka became a member of the ILO Governing Body for the first time with an overwhelming support of 198 votes," he said. The Minister also undertook a follow-up visit to Malaysia to work out modalities for the recruitment process.

The Minister held a meeting with all major foreign employment agencies yesterday evening to apprise them of the job opportunities available in Malaysia and the procedures to be followed for recruitment of prospective candidates.

"The recruitment process will commence shortly and recruitments will be done by recognised Lankan foreign employment agencies in co-ordination with their Malaysian counterparts under the Ministry's supervision," the Minister said.

He said that the job agency of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) will also join the recruitment process. The first batch of selected candidates will be sent to Malaysia during the first week of next month, he said.

During his visit to Malaysia, the Minister called on the Malacca Chief Minister who informed him of huge employment opportunities in the IT field, with salaries above Rs. 45,000. He has also told about the job opportunities available as house maids/nurses to look after elders.

He held discussions with the Canadian Labour Minister on job opportunities to Sri Lankans in Geneva during his recent foreign tour. The Minister also explored similar job opportunities in many countries, including in Seychells where a large number of jobs are available in the hotel industry.