Saudi’s Takamol makes millions on the back of migrant workers

A group of workers around a table, with yellow hats. There are refrigerators in the background

11 min read

Saudi Arabia’s Professional Accreditation Programme (PAP), also known as Takamol or Skills Verification Programme, is a mandatory testing scheme that has imposed financial and logistical burdens on migrant workers without corresponding benefits, while generating huge profits for the Kingdom. Governments at origin also reap some financial benefit from this programme.

Launched in 2022, the PAP is managed by Takamol Holding, which is an initiative of Saudi’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) - Opens in new tab. As of October 2023, over 200,000 migrant workers - Opens in new tab have been accredited since its launch. At US$50 per person, even if half of these workers – a very conservative estimate – had paid the fees out of pocket, that amounts to US$5 million in total, of which at least 65-70% goes into Saudi’s coffers. Migrants are effectively paying for access to the labour market, as the accreditation scheme offers them no tangible benefits beyond meeting entry requirements.

PAP has two services: Professional Verification and Professional Examination. The former is for ‘highly skilled’ workers who have diplomas and degrees, whereas the latter covers ‘medium and low’ skilled workers. There are two separate portals to register for testing in Saudi and in the origin country: the Saudi - Opens in new tabone lists 22 categories - Opens in new tab and gives employers an option to buy test slots individually or in bulk. The certificates are valid for five years. The international - Opens in new tabportal is for skills testing at origin, before visas are processed and workers are deployed. This report looks primarily at the concerns and problems with the latter, where financial exploitation is more prevalent.

Takamol Holding has partnered with government and government-partnered skills centres in four countries – India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Though Egypt is listed on the Saudi skills verification site - Opens in new tab, there is no partnership detail as yet. In three of the countries, Takamol has partnered with government institutions: In Pakistan the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission - Opens in new tab (NVTTC), in Sri Lanka the Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission - Opens in new tab, and in Bangladesh the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training run Technical Training Centres (TTC) - Opens in new tab.

In India, the partnership is with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) - Opens in new tab, which is listed as a not-for-profit public limited company and is a unique Public Private Partnership (PPP) with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), with majority ownership by the private sector. Yet, NSDC received the contract without any public tendering process.

In all of these countries, the skills training and certification process is an independent stream of operation. Yet as per the agreement with Saudi, those existing certificates are not recognised, and instead potential recruits must go through additional certification through the Saudi-approved channels at an extra cost.

Who are the ‘mega recruiters’?

Saudi Arabia has accredited a group of recruitment companies as ‘mega recruiters’ - Opens in new tab, who receive visas in bulk and are permitted to hire workers directly. Mega recruiters are employers, and therefore responsible for all related regulatory processes that fall under immigration and labour laws. These mega recruiters in turn deploy workers to meet clients’ needs, but will remain responsible for the labour and living conditions. By using mega recruiters, businesses do not have to worry about meeting the Nitaqat (Saudisation) quota.

While the requirement for skills certification in itself is not an issue, the manner in which the agreement has been finalised and executed leaves room for scepticism. This is especially true since Saudi does not have a minimum wage or mandatory experience- and skills-related wage increment.

In Saudi, the fees start from SAR360 (US$95) for an individual test. MR has not been able to ascertain if employers foot the bill, or if deductions are made from workers' wages to cover the cost. For tests taken at origin, the fee for the skills test is US$50 and is paid by workers. Origin countries seem eager to comply with the scheme, not only to secure access to their largest overseas labour market, but also because it’s an opportunity for government revenue.

In Bangladesh, the fees for the first 1,000 tests were covered by the government last year, but subsequently workers had to start paying. Testing centres receive part of the fees as a commission. The actual percentage is not uniform or publicly stated. Between February 2023 and September 2024, Bangladesh deployed over 750,000 male workers - Opens in new tab, the majority of whom work in lower-income sectors that fall under the mandatory testing categories. Though such detailed data is not available for the other countries, the majority of the 200,000 accredited workers likely fall under the medium-to-low skill category. And in the next three to five years, all currently accredited workers will have to retake the test, creating a continuous source of revenue for Saudi.

“TTC receives US$13 and the rest goes to Saudi,” says Shakirul Islam, activist and Chairperson, Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Program (OKUP). “This is clearly exploitation. My strong position is that all the stakeholders in this whole recruitment business are earning money from the migrant workers. They have no investment, neither the government of Bangladesh, or Saudi, or recruitment agents. They all suck money from migrant workers, which is a pity. Both countries already benefit from the labour of migrant workers by way of remittances and economic development, but not really taking care of the workers. And workers have no guarantee that they will get a better job or salary because of this.”

The Bangladeshi government is seeking to get international recognition for their skilling, and maybe attempting to appease Saudi hoping it has a wider impact, but they do not have proper assessment if this process will help workers, he says.

A line of tables, with a plywood privacy screen in a hall — The site of Takamol testing in a government-run Technical Training Centre in Bangladesh

Several other stakeholders in the employment migration process in Bangladesh and India who were interviewed voice similar concerns: they feel that the certification seems to be a revenue generating exercise for the governments, while increasing the costs of migration for the workers. According to several sources, the revenue share between Takamol Holding and NVTTC was 50-50 in Pakistan, and was supposed to be the same ratio share with NSDC. However, currently it has decreased to between US$15-17 for NSDC, and the rest to Takamol.

Though the costs of the tests are uniform across origin countries, workers wages are only determined bilaterally, and is discriminatory based on nationality. The skills-specific referral wages for India, for instance, tend to be higher than what Bangladesh or Pakistan have established. Labour experts interviewed say they are concerned that the programme has become a money sharing deal, with no viable benefit for the workers. They argue it only increased expenses for the worker which goes to fund the Saudi firm, and agencies such as NSDC. They feel it also completely undermines Indian skills certification, and NSDC also ends up taking credit for talent sent abroad, though they have no real role in recruitment or job placement.

Corruption is also regularly reported by workers. One who fails in one centre can take the test in another, by paying the fees a second time, and pass it.

A recruitment agent who operates in Lucknow, India, says corruption is most rife in the ‘non-diploma’ holder category. Testing centres can charge them multiple times until they ‘pass’ the exam.

In the Indian context in particular, Takamol is in conflict with existing regulations. As per the Emigration (Amendement) Rules, 2017, workers cannot be charged for “trade test fees." The implementation of the Emigration Act falls under the jurisdiction of the Protector General of Emigrants within the Ministry of External Affairs. However, without a public tender, it remains unclear whether these authorities were involved in the decision-making process that enabled NSDC to partner with Takamol

As MR previously reported from Bangladesh, the testing itself seems haphazard. Inside a large hall there are multiple sessions in progress, and in the middle of the hall are a few tables converted into a semi-cubicle with plywood planks, and a camera atop the box. This is where the 90-minute Saudi Takamol certification testing - Opens in new tab takes place. This camera is linked to monitors in Saudi. There are two components to the testing – one computerised test that involves 30 multiple choice questions and a practicals test that assesses the skills.

Saudi has managed to roll out the Takamol scheme in the five above-stated countries, all of whom are a significant source of labour for the Kingdom. But one key origin state, the Philippines, has so far resisted the scheme, mainly because it undermines the value of their own national skill certification. Ironically, Saudi doesn’t particularly have an established system of their own for many of the listed trades, and origin states undermine the value of their own more established skills training and certification programmes.

Another Indian agent, ND, who works with Saudi mega recruiters [see sidebar] says government bodies (or quasi government bodies such as NSDC) are trying to create relevance for themselves. “They come up with processes that add no value and addresses no needs. Their relevance is validated by the number they throw around, but they haven’t played a role in actual deployment.”

One of Bangladesh’s largest recruiter for the Saudi market, BR, says the rationalisation given was that workers failed trade tests on landing in Saudi. “But we have engineers from the recruiting company come and test the workers as part of the interview process.” Now workers not only have to pay the fees, but also incur steep expenses on travel from their hometowns to the testing centres, and finding accommodation and food. Expenses they can ill afford.

India had entered into a controversial and much censured agreement with Israel to send thousands of workers to replace Palestinian labour during the ongoing genocide. Indian media reported - Opens in new tab that the deployment was happening in two ways: G2G (Government-to-Government) through NSDC and B2B (Business-to-Business) under the Ministry of External Affairs. Israel plans to recruit 20,000 workers in total from India, but Israeli builders have complained - Opens in new tabthe first lot of workers deployed who were tested, certified and sent through NSDC lacked the necessary skills. The media reports barely make mention of the highly dangerous environment workers are being sent to, nor the ethics of the decision made by the Indian government that enables colonial expansion in Palestine.

Both of these recruiters work primarily with the company directly, and not the subcontractor. “In 99% of the cases these clients will send a delegation directly to do the interview, trade test being part of it. If the client is satisfied with that, what is the need for NSDC? Because now the client doesn’t have to pay for these tests.”

The only logical reason for testing is misuse of visa categories, so if they don’t get X visa, then you send someone on Y visa, explains ND. “Now you just give Rs12000 under the table and get the certificate. In my estimate, only 25% are going with proper skills and the rest are bribing.” However, corruption in medical testing — at Wafid centres (previously known as GAMCA*),where a mandatory medical examination must be passed before travelling to GCC — is leagues ahead of Takamol, says ND.

For a worker headed to Saudi, there are a minimum of three steps, all leading to one of the main cities or towns, to first do their medical at a GAMCA centre, then biometrics at a Tasheer centre and then the Takamol testing. Each step delays the deployment of workers, and introduces new levels of corruption.

“All of this should ideally be a one-stop centre, and biometrics at least can be done online as is the case from Hajj/Umrah visas,” the Dhaka-based agent says. “Slots in Tasheer are like gold.”

ND also recommends a centralised system. “The government should put out a tender for one-stop centres where the pre-departure orientation and training takes place, alongside skills, medical, biometrics.” The current model costs the worker upwards of Rs80,000 just in terms of expenses, not taking into account any recruitment fee they may have been charged.

In the case of India, the lack of transparency, and award of this highly lucrative scheme to a private company such as NSDC, warrants particular scrutiny. MR reached out to India’s MSDE and Bangladesh’s BMET for comments, but no response was received at the time of publishing this report.

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