As many as 56,173 Vietnamese labourers, including 16,942 women, worked overseas in the first six months of this year, a 1.7 percent increase compared with the same period last year, the Department of Overseas Labour (DOLAB) under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) has reported.

In June alone, 11,777 labourers went abroad for work.

Taiwan (China) is the top market for Vietnamese workers with 7,505 labourers, followed by Japan (with 2,324 workers), the Republic of Korea, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, besides Qatar.

The MOLISA has signed and implemented a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Republic of Korea on sending Vietnamese workers to that country under the Employment Permit System (EPS). The preparation for the signing of MoUs between Vietnam and Thailand, and Vietnam and Malaysia on labour cooperation is under way.

The DOLAB supported enterprises to carry out contracts on sending labourers to Saudi Arabia and Qatar and in dispatching apprentices to Japan in the construction and shipbuilding sectors since April.

The department has also implemented training programmes on vocational skills, foreign languages and other necessary knowledge required by people who want to work as domestic workers in Taiwan.

Vietnam and Germany have signed a letter of intent regarding Vietnamese citizens working in Germany as caregivers. This is a good opportunity to increase the number of Vietnamese labourers going to that country to between 500 and 700 per year.-VNA