The command post visited Saudi Arabia from April 9 to April 13, 2017 and held discussions with Ethiopian immigrants and communities regarding their deportation and smooth return.
Recently, the government of Saudi Arabia enacted a law aimed at deporting illegal immigrants in the country in order to create a nation without illegal expatriates. The law in effect targets mainly African and South Asian blue collar workers. Although the government of Saudi Arabia has offered many supports for those willing to leave the country by the deadline it has fixed, many are still not reporting for the process.
Accordingly, many Ethiopian immigrants in the country were affected and are about to be deported. To address the issues that are brought up by this, the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has established a command post under the leadership of the State Minister. The discussion highlighted challenges in the process and was reported to have been successful.
This decision has led to the return of 2.5 million illegal immigrants until late 2013. Currently, there are around 2 million illegal expatriates in Saudi Arabia including many Ethiopians.
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