Qatar’s sincere and consistent steps, taken both by introducing new pieces of legislations and implementing them, regarding safeguarding migrant workers rights are winning international recognition. In the recent years Qatar has introduced a number of new laws to protect the welfare of migrant workers who are either engaged in country’s dozens of mega infrastructure projects or doing any job in any capacity in Qatar.
A delegation of visiting Indonesian senators have appreciated Qatari government for introducing a new labour law to safeguard the migrant workers in Qatar. They expressed their appreciation in a meeting with Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, H E Dr Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi in Doha the other day.
Qatar in fact has become a role model in the region when it comes to human or workers rights. For years, Qatar has been introducing multiple reforms and new laws to safeguard rights of migrant workers and raising country’s existing standards to meet international standards for the protection of rights of foreign workers.
In April this year, the International Labor Organization (ILO) office was opened in Qatar, which was the first step in implementing the technical cooperation agreement signed between the government of the State of Qatar and ILO in October 2017.
The three-year agreement aims at promoting labour laws in the country and build government officials’ capacity to implement them and ensure that recruitment practices are in line with best international practices.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the office, the Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, H E Dr Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi had said that the State of Qatar held a pioneering position in the region with regards to labour rights. “The technical expertise and directives that the ILO will provide will be of high importance, especially that Qatar is in transition to adopt a modern work system that meets the best standards, not only among the GCC countries, but also around the world,” he had said.
In October 2017, the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs had signed 36 bilateral agreements and five Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with the countries sending labor, in order to provide basic legal protection for expatriate workers before bringing them to the State of Qatar.
The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, Qatar Foundation and other organisations has also taken numerous steps for the welfare of migrant workers and the world is praising those steps.
