During the last four years, the number of women seeking employment in foreign countries as housemaids has decreased by around 100,000, the Digital Infrastructure and Foreign Employment Minister Harin Fernando yesterday said.
“According to statistics, in 2014, the number of housemaids going abroad reached 300,000 where as in 2017, this number had decreased to 200,000,” the Minister said.
“A drop of 100,000 is a significant result. I personally believe that this number should see a further drop. We don’t want to send unskilled labourers abroad. We want to send skilled and semi-skilled workers instead. We do not want to continue with the habit of sending our sisters and mothers abroad as housemaids,” Minister Fernando pointed out.
Fernando also said that he as the Minister of Foreign Employment, has forwarded a special proposal to the Finance Minister for the next Budget proposal which will be immensely beneficial for persons in foreign employment. He expressed his confidence that this proposal will most definitely be included in the upcoming Budget proposal.
“This proposal will take the nature of an incentive for those who send their remittances to the country through the banks. We see a tendency in most of these employees sending their money through ad-hoc methods. Many people go abroad because they want to build a house. With this proposal, such people will be relieved. More money will be sent via the banks. I am sure, this proposal will be a revolutionary concept,”Minister Fernando pointed out.
He vehemently denied the allegation that a tax would be imposed upon foreign remittances. He was speaking at a press brief at Sirikotha, UNP Headquarters yesterday afternoon.
Meanwhile, speaking of the changes and trends in employment for the last few years, Minister Fernando pointed out that employment has increased from 7.7 million in 2014 to 8.2 million in 2017. He also pointed out that private sector employment has increased from 40.9% in 2014 to a 43.3% in 2017.
The Minister also observed that employment in the government sector has decreased from 15.5% in 2015 to a 14.4% in 2017.
He pointed out that this is a positive change. “We are not a government that fills the government sector with employees for political advantage. We cannot afford to fill the public sector with more heads. That is the bitter truth. If we take the CTB for example, we have about eight employees per bus.
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