In a roundtable held in partnership between Egypt's Ministry of Labour and the International Labour Organization (ILO), stakeholders convened to explore the current landscape of private employment agencies and the challenges they face in facilitating fair recruitment of Egyptians abroad. The event was held under the EU-funded regional programme "Towards a Holistic Approach to Labour Migration Governance and Labour Mobility in North Africa (THAMM Plus)", which promotes safe migration and fair recruitment in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia with the EU.
It comes as Egypt begins enforcing the new Labour Law No. 14 of 2025, thus an open exchange was held with Egyptian Minister of Labour Mohamed Gobran, ILO Cairo Director Eric Oechslin, and Legal Advisor Ehab Abdel Aaty, who responded to questions from recruitment agencies on the realities of the sector. This included clarity on licensing and renewal requirements and forms of collaboration to strengthen fair recruitment for Egyptians seeking to work abroad.
© ILO
Speaking at the event, Egypt's Minister of Labour, Mohamed Gobran, stated:
"We view the entry into force of the new Labour Law No. 14 of 2025 as an opportunity to raise awareness of its key provisions, particularly those concerning the employment of Egyptians abroad, and to foster constructive dialogue with recruitment agencies to exchange perspectives and identify challenges. We value the role of serious companies that comply with national legislation and fair recruitment principles and will continue to support them.
However, we will take firm action against fraudulent and non-compliant operators."
Minister Gobran continued, "The Ministry is committed to enhancing the efficiency of recruitment processes through alignment with national laws and international labour standards, ensuring Egyptian workers access decent and safe employment opportunities abroad. During the first phase of the programme, a Pre-Departure Orientation Unit was established to raise awareness among workers of their rights and obligations, alongside capacity-building for labour inspectors and awareness campaigns targeting employers and recruitment agencies."
Eric Oechslin, Director of the ILO Cairo Office, added:
"The ILO has long been at the forefront of promoting decent work for migrant workers globally, ensuring migration is fair, safe, and beneficial for all: workers, employers, and both origin and destination countries. Our Fair Migration Agenda is built on four key principles:
- Ensuring labour migration is a choice, not a necessity, by strengthening labour markets in origin countries.
- Improving working conditions and social protection for migrant workers.
- Combatting exploitation and unfair recruitment practices.
- Promoting policy coherence between labour migration, skills development, and employment strategies, with international labour standards.
In Egypt, through the EU-funded programme now in its second phase as THAMM Plus,
we have reinforced institutional capacities to translate fair recruitment principles into practice."
Technical presentations throughout the day included a briefing on the new labour law by the Ministry's Legal Advisor Ehab Abdel Aaty, a session on the World Employment Confederation's Code of Conduct for employment agencies presented by Miran Osama, .In addition to presenting a technical overview on recruitment costs and related fees, and promising practices from other countries led by Hans van de Glind, International Consultant with the ILO, which paved the way for an open dialogue session with the recruitment agencies. The dialogue tackled practical challenges and opportunities for strengthening fair recruitment of Egyptian workers abroad.
The day concluded with an agreement on a number of ways forward, including sharing a detailed roundtable report with participants. Other steps will include initiatives such as conducting a study on the operations of PRAs and developing practical tools to support fair recruitment in line with the new Labour Law.
