MPs want Israel labour deal fast-tracked

Parliamentary committee chairpersons have decried delays in the signing of a government to government labour export agreement between Malawi and Israel, saying it is hampering opportunities for eligible Malawians.

Led by Public Appointments Committee chairperson Joyce Chitsulo, the chairpersons on Saturday summoned the recently instituted task force on labour export to Israel for an update on the agreement which is yet to be signed.

She asked the task force to provide a timeline on when the agreement will be signed as well as reasons for the delay.

“Malawi awaits the agreement to resume labour export,” said Chitsulo, who was in the Malawi delegation to Israel that had first-hand impressions of the conditions Malawians are working in.

But in his presentation, Ministry of Labour Commissioner Hlalerwayo Nyangulu said a bilateral labour agreement takes time to finalise because it has to be a legally binding document.

He said in the interim, Malawi can sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) while processing the bilateral labour agreement

Nyangulu said they will now be a recruiting agency and that plans are underway to establish a department responsible for this.

He said: “That is why we are seeking funding for this department. We have the capacity to carry out the task as we are present in all 28 districts.”

Nyangulu challenged that the Ministry  of Labour managed the labour export deal to South Africa through The Employment Bureau of Africa (Teba).

“We can ride on the expertise with Teba to handle the Israel labour export assignment.

“This is in line with the expectation of the Israeli government that we have to do recruitment or identify a non-governmental organisation to manage this,” he said.

His explanation is in contrast with what the delegation reported to the National Assembly on Thursday when it recommended that the recruitment of workers to Israel should be constituency-based.

But Parliamentary Committee on Youth chairperson Baba Malondera said the ministry was trying to frustrate the labour export deal through the delays.

He said: “It is painful how our civil servants work. It seems they are bent on frustrating the labour export deal.

“In this meeting, we need reasons why the deal has been delayed and we demand proper timelines when the MoU will be signed” he said.

Ntchisi South parliamentarian Ulemu Chilapondwa alleged that bureaucracy at the ministry was a sign of frustration among some civil servants who will not benefit from the deal.

 “So for us, we do not care about your jargon on labour. All we want is progress. If the deal fails people will blame politicians and not you. The Ministry of Labour is failing Malawians,” he said.

Parliamentary Committee on Trade and Industry chairperson Paul Nkhoma, who was part of the Malawi delegation to Israel, wondered why the ministry wants to be a recruiting agency in the deal.

He said the Government of Israel clearly stated that the labour export deal should be private sector-led and government should come in just to regulate the process.

Chitsulo said they will engage the Israeli Government to open another window for Malawi to export the first 10 000 workers.

Israel has offered Malawi up to 100 000 jobs across various sectors with the first 10 000 workers expected within a month.

Currently, the Israel labour export deal has been suspended until the bilateral labour agreement is signed.