Nationalization of Middle East Labor Force: Early Signals of Future Changes in the Labor Market
As countries that used to rely on expatriates for their technical manpower needs begin to nationalize their labor force, some of them are strengthening their partnerships with the Philippines along training of their trainers. Recently, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) reported that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has trained 338 of its TVET trainers through its partnership with the government. This year, according to the report, 10 more Saudi nationals will be trained (via the MFI Foundation, Inc., formerly the Meralco Foundation) to conduct training in qualifications such as automotive servicing, electronic ignition system, electronic fuel injection, troubleshooting automotive engine systems and automatic transmission systems. Previously, trainers in qualifications such as food processing, multi-media, computer networks, video production, photography, refrigeration and air-conditioning repair were trained under the program. ("Saudi Tech-Vo...