Malawi delegation in Israel for labour talks
Newly-appointed Secretary to the Treasury Betchani Tchereni has led a Malawi delegation to Israel for discussions on the labour export deal which has seen at least 1 000 Malawians working in that country.
The 12-member delegation includes senior government officials from the ministries of Finance, Foreign Affairs, Labour and the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC) and chairpersons of relevant parliamentary committees.
In an interview in Tel Aviv, Tchereni said there have been many stories surrounding the labour export arrangement, as such, it was felt necessary to make the trip and include members of Parliament to appreciate the working conditions and negotiate for more opportunities in the interest of Malawi.
He said: “Labour export has been the policy direction for both job creation and foreign exchange generation. When stories about the deals with Israel came mainly in the negative, it was thought that it would be necessary for both Parliament and the Executive arm of government to see it for themselves.
“In addition, it was also necessary to fast-track all matters of formalising the government to government agreements on this matter.”
Tchereni said Israel partners have paid for expenses of the trip.
The delegation travelled on an Israeli-chartered plane, an Airbus that also picked a cohort of 45 Malawians recently hired to work on farms in Israel.
Welcoming the delegation in Tel Aviv, the Ambassadors’ Club of Israel president Yitzhak Eldan applauded Malawi for accepting to offer labour at a time when there is war in the country.
He said the labour deal will always be cherished beyond the current troubled moments.
“We applauded the people knowing that there is war. I salute them for working here. We will do everything to respect their rights. We have a long history and we do not forget people who help us in time of need,” said Eldan.
Parliamentary committee chairpersons in the delegation are Ben Phiri of Sadc Population Caucus, Joyce Chitsulo of the Public Appointments, Patrick Bandawe of the International Relations, Paul Nkhoma of Trade and Industry Committee, Savel Kafwafwa of Social Welfare and Abel Kayembe of the Population Caucus.
The official programme shows that some the delegations’ engagements include meetings with representatives of recruitment agencies, Speaker of the Israeli Knesset, Minister of Economy, Minister of Interior and Naturalisation, head of economic committee, head of immigration, business captains and a visit to farms to interact with Malawian workers.
The office of Malawi’s Honorary Consul in Israel said since December, about 1 100 Malawians have arrived in Israel for work. They include 350 students who are on a year-long internship after which they will be granted a visa to work in Israel.
