NATIONAL JOB PROJECT KICKS OFF REGISTRATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000020

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/03/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL ELAB ECON BA POL HUMRIT
SUBJECT: NATIONAL JOB PROJECT KICKS OFF REGISTRATION
CAMPAIGN

REF: 2005 MANAMA 1773

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4(b) and
(d).

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Summary
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1. (C) The long-awaited $80 million National Employment and
Training Project began registering Bahrain's estimated 20,000
unemployed January 2 at 20 centers around the country.
Minister of Labor Dr. Majeed Al-Alawi has stated publicly
that the project will end unemployment in the Kingdom. Dr.
Al-Alawi has been personally very active in promoting the
project reaching out to both Shi'a and Sunni clerics,
politicians, political societies, and the business community,
and in coming days will attend village meetings to speak
directly with the public. The GOB has been pressuring
employers to participate in the project. According to
Bahrain Training Institute (BTI) Director Mohamed Dirbas,
employers must work to overcome a deep-seated feeling of
mistrust harbored by many unemployed persons.
Editor-in-Chief Mansour Al-Jamri highlighted the shortage of
trust on the part of the public for any project offered by
the government, while personally supporting the plan.
Australian firm EFI International is a partner with the
Ministry on the project, and the BTI is the primary provider
of training. End Summary.


2. (U) The press reports that almost 2,000 of Bahrain's
estimated 20,000 unemployed, 14% of the Bahraini workforce,
registered January 2 and 3 on the first two days of
registration for the GOB National Employment and Training
Project (NETP). Minister of Labor Dr. Al-Alawi continued to
be visible as he visited several of the 20 centers, 15 of
which are temporary sites opened specifically for the
project's registration period. In a segmented registration
plan, job seekers over 30 years of age will register in the
first week, those 25-30 in the second week, those 20-24 in
the third week, and those under 20 in the fourth week. The
second month of registration will be open to anyone who
missed the earlier specified week. The heaviest volume is
expected in weeks two and three as 56% of the unemployed are
in the 20-30 age bracket. The $80 million project has as its
goal to train unemployed Bahrainis to assume jobs which are
currently filled by expatriate workers, who make up
approximately 55% of Bahrain's workforce of 320,000. The
Ministry of Labor has targeted 10,000 new workers to be
employed within calendar year 2006 and another 10,000 in

2007. This training and employment program is a critical
component of the Crown Prince's economic reform project
launched in fall 2004.

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Come One, Come All...But Don't Dally
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3. (C) Dr. Al-Alawi said publicly December 27 that those
seeking jobs are being given a "golden opportunity" to
receive training and employment. He stressed that those who
miss the two month registration window, and therefore do not
participate in the project, will no longer be considered
unemployed. (Note: This appears to be a warning to a group
of persistent protesters from the Committee of the Unemployed
who have carried on sporadic protests in recent weeks
following violent clashes with police in late November and
early December, per reftel. End note.)

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Al-Alawi and the Press Reach Out to the People
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4. (U) Dr. Al-Alawi has conducted a highly visible public
affairs campaign to spread the word about the NETP. He began
in early December, meeting with prominent Shi'a clerics
Shaikh Isa Qassim, Shaikh Abdulla Al-Ghuraifi, and Shaikh
Hussein Al-Najati, among others, to garner their support for
the program as they speak to Shi'a followers, who are
disproportionately represented in the ranks of the
unemployed. Several subsequently promoted the program during
their Friday sermons. Dr. Al-Alawi then met with Sunni
shaikhs, politicians, business leaders and leaders of
political societies. In coming days the Minister, a former
Shi'a exile himself who returned from London following the
launch of the King's reform program, plans to visit a string
of villages to speak directly to the people and their local
leaders to encourage them to register under the project.


5. (U) Arabic daily Al-Wasat Editor-in-Chief Mansour
Al-Jamri January 4 threw his full support behind the project
while admitting that a major problem is that "there is a lack
of trust among civil society leaders and religious scholars
in any project or idea offered by the government." He
advocated that the government use additional media such as
television and radio to build public trust, and called upon
civil society groups and clerics to support the plan. The
project has used a scientific and realistic approach, which
previous unemployment plans failed to do, to identify the
unemployed, and this aspect will lead toward success, he
added.

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The Institute in the Spotlight
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6. (C) In a December 21 meeting with Poloff, BTI Director
Mohamed Dirbas also pointed to mistrust between Bahraini
unemployed and employers. Employers have historically sought
trained expatriate labor, which has been less expensive and
usually does not raise its voice through union involvement.
Bahraini workers feel betrayed by these hiring practices.
Dirbas explained that the GOB has put pressure on businesses
to hire trained Bahrainis and to cooperate with the Ministry
of Labor on the project. To make Bahraini workers more
economically competitive with expats, the GOB has presented
to parliament labor reform legislation that establishes fees
for employing expat workers.


7. (C) Dirbas said that BTI has already hired unemployed
university graduates to seek out job openings in the market
and will continue hiring to meet increased demands as BTI
takes the lead in training the registered unemployed. The
General Organization for Social Insurance has identified
sectors of the job market that currently employ expats, but
whose jobs and salaries Bahraini workers would welcome.
Dirbas cited that 76% of the unemployed are high school
graduates and school drop-outs. Another 15% have additional
schooling up through the equivalent of an associate degree
and the remaining 9% are university graduates. Beginning
monthly stipends and salaries for jobs found through the NETP
correspond to one's educational level ranging from BD 100-300
($265-800).

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Assistance from Outside This Time
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8. (U) The GOB hired an Australian firm, EFI International,
to partner with the Labor Ministry for 18 months for a sum of
$10 million to conduct a field study, provide expertise in
the assessment process, monitor training programs, and direct
the placement of trainees into jobs. For those applicants
lacking marketable skills, project staff conduct a
post-registration assessment at one of ten centers to
identify an applicant's skills and aptitudes. Based on the
results, the applicant will begin a training program at one
of three levels: craftsman, technician or specialist.


9. (U) According to those close to the program, previous
efforts dealing with the problem of unemployment were not
successful partly because they lacked a system to identify an
individual's aptitudes. Applicants were pushed to take jobs
for which they were not trained and in which they were not
skilled, resulting in discouragement and failure. There was
also much alleged corruption attached to previous efforts.
Ministry of Labor officials are far more optimistic this time
because EFI International provides more accountability and
oversight, assessment and training are a key feature of the
process, and the 20 registration centers make for easy public
access. Previously registration was handled only through the
Ministry itself. In addition, this project is staying away
from construction jobs, which are shunned by Bahrainis.

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Comment
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10. (C) Optimism is running high over the NETP. The GOB has
been very effective in its public relations campaign and the
Labor Minister himself deserves much of the credit. That
said, this is just the beginning and if the Ministry does not
come through on its public promises, there will be great
disappointment. The government's focus on this project may
be read by some as a political victory for activists who have
held (sometimes violent) demonstrations over the past year
protesting lack of employment prospects. Nonetheless, the
project is an integral part of the Crown Prince's economic
reform program to transform Bahrain's economy from a low
labor-cost model to a services-oriented, knowledge-based
model and, in the process, remedy its persistent unemployment.

ZIADEH