The Minister of State for Labour, Employment and Industrial Relations, Hon. Esther Anyakun, confirmed that Ugandans who were arrested and detained in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for various offenses will be brought back to Uganda. The minister made this announcement during the media briefing, today at media at Uganda Media Centre in Kampala. According to the minister, from October 14th to 17th, 2024, she led a government delegation to Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This ministerial and technical visit was necessary to discuss several issues between Uganda and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. “The main objective of this ministerial and technical visit was to monitor the welfare and document the conditions of work for Ugandans who live and work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is the biggest labour externalisation destination for Ugandan migrant workers accounting for over 150,000 workers. Uganda and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia signed a bilateral labour agreement in 2023 that places responsibility on the host country to provide for the rights of Ugandan workers,” she said.

Ugandan migrant workers in the Middle East alone contribute about USD 900 million per annum to Uganda’s economy. Many Ugandans have been languishing in prison centres across Saudi Arabia and central to the discussions was Uganda’s request for clemency for its citizens, including women with children born in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and those currently detained for various offenses in accordance with Saudi Arabian law, except for those serving prison sentences for capital offenses such as drug trafficking and murder. “I am pleased to announce that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has agreed to pardon Ugandan immigrant workers who have been stranded in deportation centres and prisons across the country. The decision was made during a meeting held between the Ugandan delegation, which I led, and the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, H. E. Eng. Ahmed Alrajhi, during the ministerial and technical visit,” she confirmed.

The minister stated that, as a gesture of goodwill, the Saudi Arabia government further pledged to expedite their repatriation back to Uganda and support in their reintegration. This unprecedented move is expected to bring relief to numerous Ugandan families, many of whom have been living in uncertainty regarding the fate of their loved ones who traveled to Saudi Arabia with hopes of making a livelihood and supporting their families back in Uganda. The Ugandan delegation, which comprised of the Ugandan ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Uganda’s labour attache to Saudi Arabia, and other technical officers from the ministry, focused their discussion on addressing the key challenges affecting Ugandan migrant workers in Saudi Arabia.