Several African nations are sending agricultural laborers to assist out in Israel after Hamas killed several employees and pushed many more to escape.
Workers from Thailand and other foreign nations regularly visit to Israel to assist on fields, but since the conflict began on October 7, nearly 10,000 of those workers have returned home. Over 30 Thai agricultural laborers died.
Israeli dairy laborers
Palestinian laborers made up about 20% of Israel’s agricultural workforce, but the Israeli government has barred them from working there any more. Furthermore, the Israeli government has summoned back 360,000 reservists to the army, affecting the labor force.
This has created a significant hole in Israel’s agricultural labor force, which is presently being replaced by volunteers from throughout the country with little or no farming expertise. Israel presently requires between 30,000 and 40,000 laborers to maintain its farms running.
Kenya has previously sent 1,500 laborers to Israel, and Malawi has sent 221 as well. These casual workers will be hired on 3-year renewable contracts with a monthly salary of roughly $1,500 USD.
African dairy laborers
According to Michael Lotem, Israel’s ambassador in Kenya, Israel is also preparing to hire agricultural laborers from Uganda and has already begun accepting workers from Tanzania.
He added: “We are looking to East Africa to fill the labour gap as we have had student internships programmes in place for many years with these countries and it has been a good experience.”
High unemployment in several African nations, such as Malawi, is one of the major causes driving young people to leave their home country and seek work elsewhere. Many of the African laborers, however, are anxious about their living circumstances in Israel, as well as their safety as the conflict continues.
In response to safety concerns, Lotem said that agricultural laborers would not be deployed in combat zones and would be given the same security as Israelis.
