(July 03, 2012, by Graham Peebles)--charts the horrendous abuse faced by Ethiopian migrant workers in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states and Lebanon where they are traded by unscrupulous traffickers – “not brokers/agents in any recognizable, legitimate sense of the word, but common criminals engaged in human trafficking and the destruction of lives”.
Employment opportunities in Ethiopia are scarce, particularly for young women with only a basic education who live in rural areas, where 85 per cent of the population reside. Many travel to the towns and cities in search of work, only to discover a barren job scene.
The World Bank puts unemployment at 20.5 per cent with a quarter of all 15-24 year olds being out of work. Unable to find anything in Ethiopia, some venture further afield, to the Gulf states of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as Lebanon and even Yemen. Women that head to the Gulf are overwhelmingly single, between 20 and 30 years of age and, according to Ministry of Labour and Special Affairs (MOLSA), 70 per cent are Muslim and almost a quarter cannot read or write.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), in its 2011 report on Ethiopia, documents a “huge increase in migration in and from Ethiopia, in particular by the youth” –50 per cent of Ethiopia’s 85 million people are under 20 years of age.
The numbers of economic migrants travelling to the Arabian peninsula via all routes is increasing, with over 70,000 in 2011 making the hazardous journey to Yemen from where they seek somehow to find a way to other Gulf states. Naive and vulnerable, they go with hope in their hearts in order to support their families and build a decent life for themselves, not realizing the servitude and exploitation that all too often awaits them.
Agents and Gulf numbers
Migrant domestic workers in Gulf countries can expect to earn 100-150 US dollars a month. Compared to the 12 dollars a month maids are paid in Ethiopia, this is a small fortune and is the carrot that lures so many innocent and desperate.
There are two “official” channels for women looking to work in the Gulf: the “public” migrant workers, registered with MOLSA, who secure work through personal contacts abroad, and the 110 private employment agencies (PEA) which work directly with employers or agencies in the relevant Gulf country.
MOLSA says 30,000 a year are processed through these channels, and estimates that a further 30,000 pass through illegal brokers; these may be individuals or companies, many of which are little more than criminal traffickers. Read more from Redress Information & Analysis »
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Employment opportunities in Ethiopia are scarce, particularly for young women with only a basic education who live in rural areas, where 85 per cent of the population reside. Many travel to the towns and cities in search of work, only to discover a barren job scene.
The World Bank puts unemployment at 20.5 per cent with a quarter of all 15-24 year olds being out of work. Unable to find anything in Ethiopia, some venture further afield, to the Gulf states of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as Lebanon and even Yemen. Women that head to the Gulf are overwhelmingly single, between 20 and 30 years of age and, according to Ministry of Labour and Special Affairs (MOLSA), 70 per cent are Muslim and almost a quarter cannot read or write.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), in its 2011 report on Ethiopia, documents a “huge increase in migration in and from Ethiopia, in particular by the youth” –50 per cent of Ethiopia’s 85 million people are under 20 years of age.
The numbers of economic migrants travelling to the Arabian peninsula via all routes is increasing, with over 70,000 in 2011 making the hazardous journey to Yemen from where they seek somehow to find a way to other Gulf states. Naive and vulnerable, they go with hope in their hearts in order to support their families and build a decent life for themselves, not realizing the servitude and exploitation that all too often awaits them.
Agents and Gulf numbers
Migrant domestic workers in Gulf countries can expect to earn 100-150 US dollars a month. Compared to the 12 dollars a month maids are paid in Ethiopia, this is a small fortune and is the carrot that lures so many innocent and desperate.
There are two “official” channels for women looking to work in the Gulf: the “public” migrant workers, registered with MOLSA, who secure work through personal contacts abroad, and the 110 private employment agencies (PEA) which work directly with employers or agencies in the relevant Gulf country.
MOLSA says 30,000 a year are processed through these channels, and estimates that a further 30,000 pass through illegal brokers; these may be individuals or companies, many of which are little more than criminal traffickers. Read more from Redress Information & Analysis »
Related posts:
Internet intrusion and increased repression in Ethiopia (by Graham ...
Unlawful Imprisonment in Ethiopia (by Graham Peebles)
Media Control in Ethiopia (by Graham Peebles)
The Ethiopian land giveaway: what is yours is mine ...
Disempowerment and suppression of freedoms in ...
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