Tanzania will host the Second Doha Dialogue on Labour Mobility and Employment in October 2026, becoming the first African nation to do so. The event will take place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dar es Salaam and is expected to provide over 4,000 new jobs for Tanzanians across the GCC.
The dialogue will bring together member states of the African Union (AU) and countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain, as well as Jordan and Lebanon.
Focus on labour mobility and employment opportunities
The meeting will focus on strengthening international cooperation on labour mobility and promoting decent employment opportunities. Key issues to be discussed include the strengthening of bilateral labour agreements, skills matching and recognition for migrant workers, and the development of effective labour mobility systems that respond to emerging labour-market needs and technological changes.
Tanzania’s President, Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan, is expected to be the Guest of Honour. The government aims to use the dialogue to expand employment opportunities for Tanzanians abroad, protect the rights of migrant workers, and enhance cooperation between African and Gulf countries.
Improving workforce competitiveness
The Tanzanian government is keen to improve its workforce competitiveness and spearhead the implementation of the country’s National Development Vision 2050. The dialogue will serve as a platform to translate policy commitments and agreements into practical and measurable outcomes.
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It will also promote safe, orderly, productive, rights-based, and sustainable labour mobility. Other areas of discussion will include fair recruitment systems, skills recognition, social protection for migrant workers, and long-term cooperation between labour-sending and labour-receiving countries.
Matching labour market demands with workforce skills
The Second Doha Dialogue is expected to provide an important platform for discussing how labour market demands can be matched with workforce skills, while strengthening the protection of the rights and welfare of Tanzanians seeking employment opportunities abroad.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) notes that Tanzania is a key hub for migration dialogue and coordination across East and Southern Africa. The country currently chairs the Regional Ministerial Forum on Migration and hosts the IOM’s African Capacity Building Centre (ACBC), which supports migration governance and professional training across the continent.
Tanzanian workers have been increasingly finding employment opportunities in various sectors across the GCC, including agriculture, livestock, healthcare, engineering, technical trades, driving, hospitality, and domestic services.
The government is also promoting skills-based labour mobility through practical training programs for graduates, workplace training, skills recognition, and pre-departure preparation.
