An official at the Labor Office in the Eastern Province has refused to receive a petition from farmers in the region in which they requested exemption from the Nitaqat system. Farming does not attract Saudi jobseekers, they stressed, saying that the farming sector is heavily dependent on foreign manpower. As a result, it is difficult for farmers to implement the set Saudization quota, they said in the petition. The farmers said that the hot and humid weather in the Kingdom makes the job very difficult. They claimed that the ministry's insistence on applying Nitaqat to farming will compel Saudi farmers to abandon agriculture, which is supported by the government. They said that Indians were the only foreign workers ready to work in the fields. However, the ministry refuses to issue the required number of visas for Indian workers, they alleged. The ministry issues only 40 percent of visas for India and distributes the remaining percentage to other countries, they alleged in the petition. Earlier this month the Saudi Gazette quoted Ali Al-Marzouq, a farmer, as saying that it is hard to find Saudis who want to do the work, as the salaries are very low – ranging between SR600 and SR800 a month – and the work requires being at the farm from early morning until sunset. Abdul Hakeem Mahfouz, another farmer, said the Ministry of Labor requires farms to have a total of five to 10 percent Saudis among their workforce. It certainly is a very high percentage for farmers if they want to avoid falling into the Red Zone, he said. __
