Asian and Middle East labour ministers mull recommendations of Abu Dhabi Dialogue

Manila: Asian and Middle East labour ministers have a list of 10 recommendations that must be observed by countries that send and receive overseas workers, for the purpose of increasing the benefits of all parties involved in labour migration, sources said.

Four of the 10 provisions could be easily categorised as controversial because they are aimed to curb current practices, said a source who requested for anonymity.

A draft of the Framework of Regional Collaboration of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue has recommended reduction of recruitment costs; development of standard employment contracts; create measures allowing government action to inspect workplaces and enforce labor laws; and stage campaigns to help migrant workers save money.

Three other recommendations found at the draft addressed recruiters and governments. It said that recruiting agencies must be responsible for the activities of local labour brokers; governments must give pre-departure and post-arrival information seminars for migrant workers; and governments must create mechanisms to balance labor supply and demand.

Three other recommendations found at the draft included standard practices of governments that send and receive overseas workers, such as provision of affordable transit home; enhancement of workers' skills and certifications; and recognition of the value of work experiences abroad.

The draft of the framework was based on inputs from the meeting of ADD's senior officials in January.

"The framework is aimed at promoting cooperation, improving efficiency, and enhancing protection which can benefit all contract workers in Asia," said Philippine Labour Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz.

It was also a reaction to criticism that overseas workers and labour rights groups were not invited to give inputs to the ADD communiqué.

The framework will commit participating countries "to taking domestic, bilateral, and multilateral measures to increase the benefits of international labour migration," Baldoz explained.

The "comprehensive recommendations" have satisfied all the deciphered challenges of the four stages of labour migration such as recruitment, employment abroad, preparation for return, and reintegration, said an insider.

The recommendations were also made to assist overseas workers, recruiters and governments that send and receive labour migrants, said the same insider.

Asian and Middle East labour ministers have been discussing for two days at the ADD meeting, from April 17 to 18 a framework of unilateral, bilateral, multilateral and regional action plan to enhance regional cooperation that will mutually benefit countries that send and receive overseas workers.

They are expected to adopt at ADD's Second Ministerial Consultation on April 19 a Framework of Regional Collaboration of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue.

Present at Manila's ADD meeting were 11 labour ministers of labour-sending countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam; and eight labour ministers of labour-receiving countries include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

Japan, Malaysia, and South Korea were categorized as observers.

The first round of ADD was hosted by UAE in 2008, an offshoot of the Colombo Process, a regional meeting of labour-sending countries.

There are nine million overseas Filipino workers worldwide. They sent $20 billion to their relatives in the Philippines in 2011, making them the world's fourth largest sources of foreign remittances. Asian migrants sent home $191 billion in remittances in 2011, the World Bank said.