10,000 vacancies for Lankans in Korea

Mohammed NAALIR

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka has received 10,000 employment quotas in Korea following talks with the Korean Labour and Employment Ministry, said Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Minister Keheliya Rambukwella on Thursday.

Addressing the media at the Foreign Employment Bureau auditorium, Rambukwella said: “Although 10,000 job quotas were received, only 2,000 employment opportunities are available on the website.

The Ministry decided to hold a competitive examination this year instead of for 2008 to increase the rate of employment opportunities.

Rambukwella was confident if the competitive examination held early 5,000 employment opportunities could be obtained in Korea.

He said the foreign employment is also one of the most important sectors which bring foreign exchange to Sri Lanka. The net profit earned in 2006 in the foreign employment sector was US Dollar 2.3 billion.

It contributed mostly to fill the Budget deficit last year.

Rambukwella also said that earlier there were only six countries got employment opportunities in Korea. But today, we have to compete with 13 countries. Therefore, promoting foreign employment is very vital. A policy frame has also been drawn.

Meanwhile, the Ministry has drawn short-term, middle-term and long-term programmes to promote this sector. The Ministry has decided to establish three training centres to train housemaids before the end of this year. The Government also intend to enter western employment market which is highly profitable than Middle-East countries.

The Minister said that 3,500 rooms will be added to hotels in Dubai. The Government is due to hold talks with relevant authorities to obtain employment opportunities there.

The Ministry has taken measures to establish a training centre next to the Air Port for housemaids. Measures are also afoot to get 3,500 employment opportunities for Sri Lankan youth. The Minister said that this sector achieved a growth of 21 per cent last year.