Lanka to waive migrant worker visa fees

Rasika Somarathna

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka in consultation with Arab countries has decided to waive migrant worker Visa fees to further encourage prospective employment seekers in the Middle East and the Asian region.

Accordingly Visa fees charged either by the sending country or the receiving country is to be annulled, following a decision taken by member countries at the recently concluded "Colombo process" summit in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The "Colombo Process" is considered as a competent authority on matters pertaining to migrant worker rights and welfare in the region, with issues being deliberated on a periodical basis, with the participation of all relevant regional heads of Asian and Middle East countries.

According to the Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Ministry in addition to the cancellation of Visa fees, the member countries have also agreed to several other measures to further strengthen matters pertaining to migrant worker rights and welfare.

Tough measures have also been proposed against abuse of foreign employment seekers with heads agreeing to take constructive measures to address the issue during the deliberations where Minister Keheliya Rambukwella participated.

A special emphasis has been laid on the proper payment of migrant worker wages and also regarding exorbitant fees charged by private employment agencies, with the members agreeing on Government intervention over such matters.

The summit has also come up with several proposals to uplift foreign employment promotion in the region with the focus on better skilled manpower.

According to Rambukwella, the member countries had agreed to launch a co-ordinated effort to train skilled workers for various sectors, considering the high demand for such manpower in the region and beyond.

The summit was held in UAE recently, with the participation of Ministers from Asian and Middle East member countries with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) acting as the mediator.

According to a proposal by Rambukwella, a committee is to be appointed to oversee the work of proposed measures while relevant countries have also agreed to open separate offices to expedite matters pertaining to migrant workers.

The Sri Lankan delegation which also included SLFEB Chairman Kingsley Ranawaka has also made arrangements to sign MoUs with Kuwait, Oman, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia while holding talks with several other countries on migrant worker promotion and welfare.