SANA?A* Oct. 20 ? In tandem with efforts to further promote bilateral relations between Egypt and Yemen* Yemen has agreed that it will exempt Egyptians in Yemen from migrant worker over-stay fees. According to Najwa Ahmed Ibrahim* labor consultant with the Egyptian embassy in Sana'a* "In the framework of promoting the Yemeni-Egyptian relations and the equal treatment of citizens on a bilateral level* the move is expected to lessen the financial burden on Egyptians who fail to get their visa within the allowed period of three months."Ibrahim said that she had been aggressively pushing for this decision as part of her efforts towards getting Egyptian workers in Yemen to be treated the same way that Yemeni workers are treated in Egypt. Egyptians entering the country do not require a visa and are allowed to stay for three months. After the three month period expires* the migrant over-stay fees were YR 150 [roughly USD 0.75] per day. Although there are no clear figures as to the number of Egyptian migrants in Yemen* Ibrahim said that the majority of them are in the medical field. She adds* "It has not been possible to assess the number of Egyptians in Yemen because no clear statistics have been conducted by the Yemen authorities and Egyptians do not require a visa to enter the country." According to Ibrahim* the move is expected to better the working conditions for Egyptians that are already in Yemen and Egyptian women who marry Yemeni nationals* rather than to encourage more Egyptians to seek work in the country.Tarek Al-Sayyad* an Egyptian national that has been working in Yemen for the past 10 years* said* "With this exemption* Egyptians are now being treated the same way Yemenis in Egypt are."Ibrahim explained that she is currently working on several projects to ease the life of Egyptians working in Yemen* among them the personal insurance of medical practitioners working in the country and the recognition of cheaper Egyptian-based HIV/AIDS tests for Egyptian workers that want to travel to Yemen.The Egyptian labor consultant* whose primary tasks entails resolving the issues faced by Egyptians workers* recommended that a copy of the work contract set out by the Yemeni Labor Law No.5 of 1991 be further circulated* and eventually adopted by Yemeni companies to greatly reduce the problems their employers and employees encounter.Egypt?s Minister of Workforce and Social Affairs Ayesha Abdel Hadi recently said that the step marked the culmination of the bilateral relationship between the two countries. She added that the future would see this cooperation progress with delegations and committees from both sides exchanging visits to discuss issues and experiences in relation to professional training and safety.Egyptian ambassador to Sana'a Mohamed Mursi recently affirmed* to Yemeni Deputy Foreign Minister Mohi al-Deen al-Dhabi* his country's keenness on strengthening bilateral relations.Mutual relations between the two countries are governed by an integrated legal framework which organizes cooperation in all fields. The historically strong Yemeni-Egyptian associations played a fundamental role in supporting Yemen during the 1962 revolution* with Egypt being the first country to open an embassy in Yemen....

المزيد...