MoL Undersecretary H E Sheikha Najwa bint Abdulrahman Al Thani (right) and Tanzania's Deputy Permanent Secretary for Labour, Employment and Relations at Prime Minister’s Office, Zuhura Yunus during the event.
Doha, Qatar: Senior officials and experts from more than 33 GCC, African and Arab countries convened in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for the Second Doha Dialogue on Labour Mobility between Africa and the GCC+.
The two-day gathering, being held on October 5-6, is focused on translating shared commitments into practical, measurable co-operation across the labour-mobility cycle. Co-chaired by Tanzania, Qatar and the African Union, the meeting brought together national delegations, the African Union Commission and leading international and regional organisations. Participants included the Executive Bureau of the GCC Council of Ministers of Labour and Council of Ministers of Social Affairs, the International Labour Organization, the Arab Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration, alongside senior officials, specialists and civil society representatives.
Opening the proceedings, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Labour of Qatar H E Sheikha Najwa bint Abdulrahman Al Thani, welcomed delegates and thanked Tanzania for hosting the Dialogue. She also recognised the African Union Commission and partner organisations for their contribution to its preparation and success.
She said Tanzania’s hosting of the second edition gave practical expression to the partnership between countries of origin and destination. Bringing the Dialogue to Africa demonstrated that it was not a one-sided exchange, but a collective undertaking in which participating states shared responsibility for shaping a more orderly, equitable and productive future for labour mobility. Commending Tanzania’s leadership, she expressed hope that delegates would build on the foundations laid in Doha.
The Doha Declaration on Labour Mobility, adopted in May 2024, had established an important foundation for co-operation, she noted. The initiative’s value should be measured not by the number of meetings convened or issues debated, but by the delivery of tangible, measurable and enduring results. The immediate priority was to define areas for joint implementation, assign clear responsibilities and establish credible measures of progress.
The Undersecretary identified three interconnected priorities spanning the full labour-mobility cycle: skills and labour-market pathways; fair recruitment, decent work and access to justice; and social protection. Effective action, she said, depended on closer co-ordination between countries of origin and destination and on solutions that were both integrated and practicable. Tanzania's Deputy Permanent Secretary for Labour, Employment and Relations at Prime Minister’s Office, Zuhura Yunus, said the meeting offered an important opportunity to examine the principal challenges and develop practical recommendations for ministerial consideration and adoption.
