Nail technicians, veterinary experts flock to Saudi Arabia

A significant number of Zimbabwean nationals have found jobs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, particularly in the manicure, pedicure, and veterinary services sectors.

First Ambassador of Zimbabwe to the Middle East Arab Islamic State, Ambassador Jonathan Wutaunashe said many Zimbabweans have successfully established themselves in these fields.

Speaking virtually at the third Zimbabwe Diaspora Annual Conference in Vumba last week, Ambassador Wutaunashe said the pedicure and manicure industry has the largest number of Zimbabweans.

He said societal hierarchy in Saudi Arabia demands that the higher one goes, the more pets they have, particularly cats, hence the availability of job opportunities for veterinarians.

“We also have Zimbabweans working in the veterinary sector. I am not sure how true, but someone told me that an average Saudi owns five cats. This gives a sense of the volume of business that our veterinarians are servicing.

“I am told that in the societal hierarchy, the higher you go, the more pets you own, particularly cats. There is an account I read somewhere that someone had as high as 500 cats, and there is another rumored to have 2,000. This illustrates the kind of engagement our countrymen are finding business or employment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” he said.

Ambassador Wutaunashe said nail technicians have also flocked Saudi Arabia.

“There is an indeterminate number of young Zimbabweans, particularly females working in the beauty industry.

“Some of them are recruited not on Zimbabwean soil. Some are recruited from neighboring countries, particularly South Africa. They come and join beauty salons, they join the beauty industry, particularly nails. It is a huge industry in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

“We discovered many of them from an unfortunate route. What was happening was that they would be given contracts not actually reflective of the conditions of service. The largest number of our nationals working in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are in this sector. We discovered many through unfortunate routes looking for help.

“Some of them wanted to go back home, while some wanted us to intervene and help their situation, negotiating on their behalf with their employers. The Embassy has been very busy addressing those issues, and in some cases, we would see it prudent to advise our nationals to simply go back home if the employers remain intransigent. Some of the agents promise conditions that are not known to the employers, and this is also worsened by the absence of an Embassy, where they would check with before traveling. We are now helping in getting clarity on behalf of our nationals before they travel,” he said.

Speaking on the interventions being made to ensure that Zimbabweans do not fall victim to unscrupulous employment agents, Ambassador Wutaunashe said: “The fact that the largest number of our nationals working in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are in that sector means that they are mostly young females, and therefore vulnerable. We need interventions by the Embassy and Government back home to assist in locating them. We need a comprehensive program to locate and identify them before they get into problems.

“We also need to ensure that people do not leave home or any other jurisdiction for that matter, without going through Government mechanisms. In that respect, we engaged our labor minister as well as that of Saudi Arabia. I think we will succeed in making sure that Saudi Arabia does not recognize visa applications that do not go through an agreed process. It is difficult to regulate some employment agents that work in certain jurisdictions. That sounds drastic, but we have no choice. We need to make sure that some of the horror stories we hear are not replicated,” he said, adding that Zimbabwean engineers and quantity surveyors are often found working on mega construction projects in Saudi Arabia.

Additionally, some Zimbabweans are employed in other sectors, including tourism, banking, and food production, with specific opportunities in milk production and processing.

Ambassador Wutaunashe said Zimbabwe received a request from a Saudi milk production company for more Zimbabweans to join, reflecting positively on their performance.

“We also have Zimbabweans in the aviation sector as flight instructors and pilots, and English teachers in the education system. Zimbabweans are employed in various professional backgrounds in Saudi Arabia, and this list is not exhaustive,” he said.

Ambassador Wutaunashe said they have not determined the number of Zimbabweans living and working in Saudi Arabia.

“We are still discovering everything, including the Zimbabwe diaspora presence. Providing numbers is challenging due to lack of documentation and rapid changes, with some working in private settings. You sometimes encounter them when they have certain problems, be it an expired passport or they want to go back home, and it is difficult for them to get an exit visa from their employer,” he said. The Herald