Pakistan, Saudi Arabia sign agreements for workers' protection and skills enhancement

• Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed two agreements on Sunday, related to workers’ recruitment and skills verification programme
• The agreement on workers’ recruitment will contribute toward further streamlining the process of exporting a workforce from Pakistan
• Certification for skilled manpower will create opportunities for the technical workforce

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed two agreements on Sunday related to worker's recruitment and skills verification programmes for the Pakistani workforce being employed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The agreements were signed during the visit of Federal Minister of Education, Professional Training, and National Heritage Shafqat Mahmood to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, according to the Foreign Office Spokesperson.

The agreement on worker recruitment will help to streamline the process of exporting a workforce from Pakistan to various professions in the kingdom while also protecting their due rights and providing comprehensive legal protection to Pakistani workers employed in Saudi Arabia.

The agreement will also aid in the resolution of contractual disputes and the pursuit of legal action against recruitment offices, companies, or agencies in the event of a violation.

The skills verification agreement will facilitate the export of a skilled and certified Pakistani workforce to the kingdom, according to the Foreign Office Spokesperson.

It may be recalled that imparting modern skills and ensuring certification of the Pakistani workforce to improve their employability abroad were key areas among the Prime Minister’s priority sectors, read the statement.

Furthermore, the certification for the skilled workforce will provide opportunities for Pakistan's technical workforce to obtain internationally recognised training and certifications.

The signing of these agreements paved the way for building strategic partnerships and complementary relations between various ministries and departments in 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, said the Foreign Office Spokesperson.