UAE based Lulu Group create 2000 Jobs in Philippines

UAE-based billionaire retail tycoon Yusuff Ali M.A. is looking to pump further investments into the Philippines and create at least 2,000 more jobs for Filipinos.

The Indian entrepreneur who operates 150 LuLu hypermarkets in the UAE and across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region and Egypt intends to make a further investment of $100 million in setting up a food processing unit and a hypermarket in the Asian country. The announcement was made following LuLu Group International’s foray into the Philippines.

Yusuff Ali officially opens his first state-of-the-art logistics and export centre in Laguna, about 64 kilometres from the capital city of Manila. The new business venture, MAY Exports Philippines Inc., has created hundreds of jobs and will be primarily engaged in the sourcing, storing, packing and exporting of fruits, vegetables and other commodities from the Philippines to the Middle East.

“Currently, we employ around 300 staff in our logistics operations and after the fruition of our planned investment, we expect to generate an additional employment for around 2,000,” a spokesperson told.

The businessman also has 9,600 Filipinos on his payroll for his hypermarket operations in the region.

“They have been a very integral part of our growth and are known for their hard work, dedication and efficiency,” Yusuff Ali said. He is also pouring a lot of money back into his home country by investing in hotels, shopping centres and convention centres.

With regards to his venture in the Philippines, Yusuff Ali is also exploring ways to remove the dependency on the middlemen by buying directly from the local farmers and pack and export the fresh produce to his more than 150 hypermarkets across various countries.

“This will be done in association with the Philippine Agriculture ministry, thus ensuring a new market to sustain local agricultural sector,” a spokesperson said.

The businessman, along with his management team, had earlier paid a courtesy call to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the Malacanang Palace and updated him about the company’s investment plans in the Philippines. The president reportedly expressed full support for the future expansion.

The company is directly importing $10 million worth of fruits, vegetables and other commodities from the Philippines. This will be increased to $30 million within a year.LuLu’s the first warehouse in the Philippines is located at the Calamba Premiere International Park.

UAE to Create Job portal for hiring Indian Workers

The UAE is creating an exclusive online portal for the recruitment of Indian workers under a memorandum of understanding [MoU] signed between the two countries during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit early this week, a senior official told.

Dr Omar Al Nuaimi, Indian workers seeking jobs in the UAE will be able to submit their job applications and review terms and conditions of the job contract on this portal from India, said Dr Omar Al Nuaimi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, and assistant for International Relations and Communications.

This UAE system will be linked with India’s similar online system, eMigrate (an online system controlling emigration of blue-collar workers, qualified nurses and sailors), the official said.

Dr Al Nuaimi said: “The MoU with India has ushered in a new chapter of cooperation. This will ensure a balanced and effective management of the (workers’) contractual work cycle in accordance with the laws and regulations, which are enforced in both countries, serving the common interest.”

He pointed out that a joint committee will be formed to ensure the proper implementation of the MoU.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation will provide the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs with details of the available jobs in the UAE and their contractual terms and conditions.

After the joint-technical committee completes the required technical measures for linking both systems, a specific procedure will be created. A model job offer and job contract will guide the workers to review the descriptions of jobs available on the system, the official said.

Navdeep Singh Suri, the Indian Ambassador to the UAE, told that the integration of both nations’ systems is expected to be done in the next three to four months.

“The MoU provides a much better framework for ensuring that Indian workers are recruited in accordance with principles of transparency, ethics and fairness. It endeavours to standardise contracts in a format that is in consonance with UAE laws so that workers can get due protection in the event of a dispute,” he said.

A senior official at the Indian embassy told that the MoU will pave the way for abolishing contract substitution, a major problem faced by Indian workers. Unscrupulous agents in India give workers contracts with exaggerated salary and perks, but when they reach the UAE, a substituted contract takes the place of the earlier contract. As the substituted contract is legally valid, workers cannot redress their grievances.

When the systems of both countries are integrated, workers will get a uniform job contract, without leaving any room for contract substitution.

In 2015, India introduced eMigrate, an electronic system that controls emigration of ECR (Emigration Clearance Required) category passport holders. India issues ECR category passports to those who have not passed Grade 10 and hence they need emigration clearance before going to work in 18 ECR countries that include the Gulf nations.

Recently, India brought sailors’ recruitment also under the purview of eMigrate, following complaints about sailors being mistreated and abandoned abroad.

eMigrate was made applicable to qualified Indian nurses also when India banned their recruitment by private agents for overseas jobs since April 30, 2015.

A Government of India order on August 2, 2016, further extended the ban to all female workers including domestic workers and authorised seven official agencies for the recruitment of all female workers including nurses. None of the 1,200 registered private recruitment agents in India is authorised to recruit nurses and female workers under ECR category.

The embassy official said a protocol on domestic workers was also signed between both nations as an annexure to the MoU. This was needed as rules and regulations of domestic workers are slightly different from other workers, he said.

How does it work

•     The UAE will create an exclusive portal
•     The UAE portal will be linked with India’s eMigrate
•     Once both systems are integrated, Indian workers seeking jobs in the UAE can submit their job applications and review the terms and conditions of the job contract on the portal from India
•     The integration of both systems will abolish contract substitution The integration is expected to be done within a few months

Kerala set up mechanism to issue ‘Good Conduct Certificate’ for UAE work visa

The southern state of Kerala has become the first Indian state to put in place a mechanism to issue ‘good conduct certificate’ mandated by the UAE for issuing a work visa to job aspirants.

Job seekers from the state can get a ‘police clearance certificate’ from district police chiefs and submit it in the UAE for a work visa, a senior UAE official told.

“We received official letters from the Kerala government and Kerala Police headquarters in this regard,” Jamal Hussain Al Za’abi, Consul General at the UAE Consulate General in Thiruvananthapuram, said.

He said the letters said the ‘police clearance certificate’ [for the purpose of ‘good conduct certificate’ in the UAE would be issued by district police chiefs in an expeditious procedure.

Al Za’abi said four other south Indian state governments are also expected to follow the same procedure. “This is my understanding … from my informal interactions with the officials of the other states. However, we have to wait for official announcements from them,” he said.

The Consulate General in Thiruvananthapuram covers five south Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Meanwhile, the UAE’s top diplomat in India confirmed that the police clearance certificate would meet the requirement for a UAE work visa.

“Prospective job seekers from countries such as India, where there is no existing procedure to obtain a federal good conduct certificate, can get the nearest equivalent document,” Dr Ahmad Al Banna, the UAE Ambassador to India, told in New Delhi.

“For UAE job seekers from India, you can obtain the police clearance certificate — it would be similar to a good conduct certificate required to get a job in the UAE,” he said in New Delhi.

The office of the Director General of Police (DGP) of Kerala confirmed that a directive in this regard was issued to all district police chiefs in the state on February 1. The system is in place and people can start submitting their applications now, he said.

“The job seekers can submit their applications at the office of the district police chief Superintendent of Police (SP) in rural districts and City Police Commissioner in the cities, along with Rs1,000 [Dh57] fee,” the official said. The same office will issue the certificates after due inquiries about the applicant.

He said applicants with a clean record could get the certificate within a few days. “This won’t be a problem for a person who is not involved in a criminal case. If the database of the district police chief does not show any criminal case against the applicant, the certificate will be issued without any delay. However, if there is any criminal record, the matter will be referred to the special branch of the intelligence wing of the state police and respective police stations, which have to give the clearance in this regard. This may take a few days more,” the official explained.

The UAE rule on good conduct certificate came into force on February 4.

How to apply

•   Visit the office of the district police chief Superintendent of Police in rural districts and City Police Commissioner in the cities

•   Submit the application in the given format along with the required documents such as passport copy.

•   Pay Rs1,000 [Dh57] fee

•   The same office will issue the certificate within a few days