On Thursday, the Libyan Embassy in Cairo set a two-week period for receiving applications from Egyptian companies legally licensed to recruit workers in Libya.
In a statement, the Embassy mentioned the documents required from these companies for submission. This includes a certificate of the company’s license to do business, a valid copy of its commercial register, a copy of the national identity card of the legal representative of the company, a written commitment to the terms of the contract, and a detailed address for the company’s headquarters and its branches. This is in addition to its adherence to the conditions of social distancing and the application of all precautionary measures.
The statement stressed that all documents are to be submitted to the Embassy’s consular section on Monday and Wednesday from 10 am to 1 pm during the coming two weeks.
Notably, the Egyptian Minister of Manpower, Mohamed Safan said he hoped Egyptian workers would arrive in Libya before the end of the year. He added that the Libyan markets’ needs don’t require substantial numbers, so the process should not take much time.
He added that the Ministry expects the number of Egyptian workers in Libya to bounce back to those of before Tripoli unrest. He stated that all workers will undergo documentation and registration procedures to protect their financial dues, and to keep their presence and work in Libya under close monitoring.
In November, a technical team from the Libyan Labour and Rehabilitation Ministry signed an online connection protocol with their Egyptian counterparts after a week of meetings.
For decades, Libya had been a destination for Egyptian workers until 2015 when an IS-affiliated militia abducted and beheaded 20 Christian Egyptian workers. In retaliation, Egypt conducted airstrikes against the group in the city of Derna.
At the same time, Egypt’s President Abdel-Fatah El-Sisi ordered the evacuation of all Egyptian nationals in Libya to ensure their safety. Prior to the evacuation, the number of Egyptian workers in Libya was estimated to be between 800,000 to one million working across all fields.