JOBS FOR AFRICANS AROUND THE WORLD
WHEREVER you go in the world these days, from the canyons of Kowloon to the bazaars of Tokyo Japan, you will find Africans in increasing numbers looking for their piece of the pie. Many of them head to Malaysia, that champion of the Developing World rapidly transforming itself into a Developed Nation. With its multiracial composition and overarching Islamic culture, Malaysia is always going to appeal to Africans more than other insular Confucianist Asian countries (for example, Korea), or Communist China. Malaysia has an energy and life very much like Africa, but it also has plenty of high technology and money to be made! According to one online source (An Average Of 300 Africans Enter Malaysia Monthly Via BKH): "An average of 300 people from African nations enter Malaysia every month via Bukit Kayu Hitam, a spokesman for Malaysian Immigration said Sunday.
"He said that last month alone, 372 people from countries such as the Cameroon, Liberia, Mali and Angola were checked through via Bukit Kayu Hitam.
It was about the same number who entered Malaysia in previous months through this Immigration check point, he said.
"They gave various reasons for wanting to visit Malaysia, he said.
"'Most of them said they were tourists while others wanted to renew their Thai visas at the Thai Consulate in Penang,' he said..."
So, 300 Africans a month enter Malaysia through one single entry point -- that is significant. For Africans wishing to follow in their footsteps, and make a go of it in Malaysia, here's the good news -- all African nationals excepting Nigerians are allowed to enter and stay in Malaysia without visas from one to three months. Of course, if you wish to take up employment you will need a work visa. Malaysian Immigration officials cannot stop any foreign nationals entering the country if the person's travel documents are all in order. For African nationals wishing to tour Malaysia, the Immigration has stipulated that they must have a return ticket or ticket to a third country and have a minimum of US$500 (RM1,900), according to aforementioned online sources.
THAT'S THE GOOD NEWS, WHAT'S THE BAD NEWS?
THE bad news is, as this story backtracked to the BBC reports: "The country's palm-fringed beaches, affordably priced hotels, sprawling shopping malls, fantastic food and wildlife already make it one of Asia's premier destinations...
"But following an incident late last year, American Wayne Wright is far from convinced by the promise of Malaysian hospitality and the claim of its tourism slogan that it is truly Asia.
"'I was walking in Chinatown,' he told the BBC, 'when a gentleman in very scruffy type clothes, nothing that you would associate with police or anyone in authority, walked up to me and asked me, 'Can I see your passport?'.'
"Fearing a scam, Mr Wright refused and tried to move away.
"'At that point he essentially lunged at me, grabbed me, put handcuffs on me really tightly and called for a few other people out in the crowd,' he explained.
"Mr Wright, a serving US Navy lawyer, says he protested that he was a US citizen and told the men who had grabbed him that his passport was in his hotel room, a matter of a few hundred meters away.
"He was taken, shackled, through Chinatown and put into a caged truck used by the Malaysian immigration department.
"There he met a second American, who had also been grabbed by men who refused to show any identification, Yahweh Passim Nam.
"It became abundantly clear to Mr Wright and Mr Nam they had more in common than their nationality. Both they and every one of the 30 or so other people arrested in the same raid were black..."
Now, being arrested for being a foreigner is one thing -- heck, it has even happened to me. However, in recent times the treatment of Africans in Malaysia has taken an increasingly violent form. As CNN's iReport report: "The African had been and continues to be a "nuisance" in the eyes and minds of the citizens of Malaysia, not excluding the police personnel. Do not be astonished if you realize that the moment they see any black color from Africa he or she is perceived to be a criminal. Their conclusion is that all blacks are criminals. This perception was long ago infused in their minds by the media. The media always portray the negative and the deplorable states as well as the conflict zones of Africa. The youth always refer to us as "Negros". These very bad remarks ended in the painful death of many Africans in Malaysia. In the recent periods two Nigerians were poisoned in a restaurant, a Yemeni guy lost 3 fingers as he was trying to block a knife that was aimed at his chest, 2 Egyptians were asked by some locals to give whatever they have, when they refused, a fight broke out and all the locals at that area came to fight the Egyptians without knowing the reason!!! Another Egyptian was robbed of RM4000 and beaten up. These are just very few of the cases.
"Let me give you a recent case in Wangsa Maju that has led to the untimely death of an African student from Chad. African undergraduate, HELP University College, Abdel Aziz Hassan Abdraman, 22, (his picture shown above) was brutally murdered just because of his color.
"On Saturday, there was a mob attack by some 20 youths wielding metal rods, sticks and knives on 10 African undergraduates in Wangsa Maju which landed in his death and injured the rest, they were unjustly harassed and mocked by the youths for four consecutive days before the attack. The youths even went up to their Tar Villa apartment and demanded money and cigarettes. According to the students and as reported by the Malaysian Newspaper "Malay Mail" the drama unfolded when three undergraduates were on the way to board the LRT to perform "terawih" prayers (long prayers by the Muslims after they have broken their fasting) at a nearby mosque at 8.30pm.
"They were confronted by some 20 youths who were believed to have hurled abuse at them (they called them Negros) and demanded money.
"When the trio ignored them and walked away, the youths, carrying switch blades, pursued them and struck one of them on the head.
"The students took refuge at the LRT (Train Station) and sought assistance from their African friends living nearby..."
On the matter of foreign students seeking part-time jobs in Malaysia, chivikk from Naijapals warned: "PLEASE MY FELLOW NIGERIANS, DO NOT GIVE EARS TO THIS BECAUSE THERE ARE NO PART TIME JOBS FOR U IN MALAYSIA. I'LL RATHER U GO TO OTHER COUNTRIES WHERE STUDENTS CAN DO PART TIME JOBS TO SUPPORT THEMSELVES. I WILL BE THE LAST PERSON TO DECEIVE MY BROTHER OR MY SISTER. BUT IF U ARE A POLITICIAN'S CHILD, NO WAHALA. IF U WANT TO SUFFER, U CAN COME..."
AFRICANS IN MALAYSIA OFTEN WORK IN THE FOLLOWING FIELDS:
Construction industry (workers will be issued red identity cards if they work in this field.)
Maids (gray identity cards issued to workers in this area.)
Manufacturing (yellow identity cards.)
Plantation work, probably the easiest to get into and the best opportunity for Africans -- plantation workers are issued green identity cards.
PRIVATE PRACTICE (NO IDENTITY CARDS)
Most doctors in the private sector are self-employed while a few are salaried. They normally work in :
Private Hospitals
Private Clinics
The remaining small numbers are employed by the :
Armed Forces
Universities
Pharmaceutical Industry
NIGERIAN SCAMMERS IN MALAYSIA (AND ELSEWHERE IN ASIA)
PERHAPS one reasons why Nigerians have a tougher time entering Malaysia than other Africans, is the global success of the Nigerian Internet Scam. Nigerian scamsters of various calibres have struck in SE Asia, inflicting damage. On the Crimes of Persuasion site, some of these hits have been described. In relation to one subset of the classic Nigerian sting (the defaced currency cash cleaning scam): "10/01 Malaysia - When police set up a local sting operation initiated by a suspicious businessman they managed to nab a Nigerian and two other men, believed to be Zimbabwean.
"Money-processing devices were seized at the hotel base of operations along with bundles of plain yellow paper; bundles of fake US$1 notes, instructions on how to wash the money and other documents.
"The businessman was attracted by the offer but he became wary when he was asked to pay US$4,000 as a processing fee."
The Malaysian (A law-abiding citizen from KL, a professional who has things to say and ears to listen) gives his own opinion on the African population of his city:
"I remember a diplomat from an African country who a couple of years ago reminded the Malaysian media not to generalise and refer as 'African' to whoever is charged for a crime hailing from that continent but specify the nationality. Fair enough. But how many of us can differentiate say a Nigerian from a Kenyan? Therefore I have no choice but to refer here to those from sub-Saharan Africa as 'Africans.'
"They are increasingly becoming a menace especially in KL and Selangor. I know that most of us don't harbour racist feelings against these people and like all nationalities are welcome to come here and spend their vacation or get an education in our institutes of higher learning. But what they apparently are doing is nothing but abusing our hospitality and taking advantage of our openness. There is no reason why so many of them should be involved in crime if their real purpose here is to get an education.
"Confidence tricksters among them are a dime a dozen and now it looks like they've 'diversified' and branched into prostitution. What next? The numbers racket? Bank robbery? Hired assassin? Weapons smuggling? The possibilities are endless and these people have no lack of genius.
"Not that our own people are saints. Our monkeys have recently been caught in Taiwan, smuggle drugs into Australia, work illegally in Japan and do menial jobs on the sly (while on tourist visas) in Chinese restaurants in the US and Canada. But they are not part of any official programme bringing our slime into those countries. I wonder how many of these nationals of African countries are here as part of the South-South Cooperation schemes that were signed when Dr Mahathir was PM?
"If they are here as semi-permanent residents for reasons other than as students or bona fide businessmen, then it is time our government took a firm decision and pack them home before they cause more trouble and misery here."
JOB RESOURCES IN AFRICA AND MALAYSIA
SO, you have decided to go look for a job in Malaysia -- or maybe you are content to stay in Africa for now. Well, here are some job hunting resources:
Africa Job Site: http://africajobsite.com.
Plenty of jobs here! Africa Jobsite provides industry specific career channels with a wealth of information tailored to your career goals. Select a career channel to research industry information, search jobs and build your portfolio.
Agilent Malaysia: http://www.jobs.agilent.com/students/malaysia.html.
Agilent Malaysia offers industrial/vacation training to Malaysian undergraduates from local and overseas universities and colleges. The company also provides opportunities (and sponsorships) for final year undergraduates who wish to do their final year projects at Agilent Technologies Malaysia.
Agilent Malaysia conducts yearly campus visits, recruitment drives and career exhibitions locally and overseas (Australia, Taiwan, Japan, UK and USA). On-line and print advertisements are placed on campus web-sites and on notice boards to inform students of upcoming Agilent events and invite applications. Agilent Malaysia's campus recruitment team, comprised of engineering and human resources managers, conducts on-campus interviews during their visits. Students are also encouraged to apply for jobs on the website listed above.
Best Jobs Malaysia: http://www.bestjobs.com.my/bt-job-ST004-1-Jobs_in_Kuala_Lumpur.htm.
This is a Malaysian job search board, kind of akin to Gaijin Pot over there in Japan, except there is no chatroom! People from all over the world are free to freely post their resumes, set up a "job alert", and browse through the hundreds of job offers regularly advertized there. Some of the workers currently sought (as of late March 2006) include those with IT/database programming skillsets, Flash/multimedia programmers, Oracle programmers, graphic designers, Java developers, and multimedia executives with skills in designing flyers, vouchers and banners and so forth. These jobs will probably be gone by the time you log in and look for them. It matters not -- there will be fresh job opportunities aplenty! And if your speciality is IT or graphic design, then it seems that Malaysia is the kind of place which needs you, and is looking for you!
Career Nation: http://www.careernation.com/site/index.asp.
A panAfrican job site offering jobs in fields from accounting to web designing, developing and programming. Search by country, job category, and/or keyword. While application info is shown in each announcement, if you want to use their "apply online" feature then you must register and post your resume (free).
Doctor Jobs: http://www.doctorjob.com.my/.
This is a resource for students and jobseekers in Malaysia. You can search for courses or colleges, find out entry requirements, apply for scholarships, and read national education news. And oh -- you can also look for jobs!
GetAFreelancer: http://www.getafreelancer.com/. Bodisatva B says (presumably somewhere in India!): "Try this site.. www.getafreelancer.com
I got a project for which i get 10K everytime I complete a project. I have complete 1 so far. Have 5K in my bank... and the remaining 5k i blew up on RAM..DVD writer.. :D
Already, 2 more have been queued up. 20K more... ::droool::
Dudes, dont waste ur precious time on adsense.. get a real online part time job. :D I am not an advertiser for getafreelancer... I am just spreading the word coz I found it to be a "moneyplant" :P (Heard of the adage "money doesnt grow on trees...!")
Intel Malaysia: http://www.intel.com/jobs/malaysia/.
Of course, as everybody knows, one of the jewels of the Malaysian job crowns is Intel -- or more specifically, IntelMalaysia, which now comprises three campuses and employs more than 8500 people. Read up here, and if you are interested, you could be one of those 8500 Intel souls! Over the past 30 years, in fact, Intel Malaysia has grown into the largest, most mature Intel manufacturing facility outside of the United States. Intel Penang is a key assembly and testing site, Intel Kulim assembles processor packaging and is an important operations center for mobile modules, and Intel Kuala Lumpur includes a multimedia super-corridor development center as well as a sales and marketing office. But whichever of these three Intel hubs that you end up, one thing is certain: you will be in a country which is a tropical paradise and a true melting pot, a land rich with a great deal of cultural diversity. Thus you have been informed!
Career streams at Intel Malaysia are divided into the following categories: integrated circuit engineering, integrated circuit manufacturing, hardware engineering, software engineering, hardware manufacturing, facilities and site services, Information Technology (IT), Finance, sales and marketing, ebusiness, supply network, materials, legal, human resources, research and development (r&d) and quality and reliability. If any of these job descriptions fit your bill, you should hit the Intel Malaysia site listed above, to search for positions.
JobsDB: http://www.jobsdb.com/MY/EN/V6HTML/JobSeeker/jobalert/jobalert_e.htm.
Subscribe to Job Alert and JobsDB will do the job matching for you. This free service notifies you of new job vacancies based on position, monthly salary, qualifications, location, and so on. New job openings will be sent to your email account every day.
Job Street: http://my.jobstreet.com/default.htm.
A wide range of services offered here, most obviously job search and job alert. Also plenty of up-to-date info about job fairs and career seminars in Malaysia, top job categories, classifieds, jobs for disabled folk, and so on. Worth a click or two.
Learn 4 Good: http://www.learn4good.com/jobs/language/english/list/country/malaysia/.
This is a resource bank for people who want to live, study or travel abroad. There are listings of jobs, schools, places of accommodation, translators, hostels, discussion forums and information about travel and visas. You can search jobs by location, and category. Naturally, Information Technology (IT) gets a high priority on the Malaysian page, and the last time I checked, there were jobs available at such places as SK InfoTech, Adance Marine Services (database developer), Vantronic Industries, Technexel (Java developers), NTi Systems & Solutions in Subang Jaya (IT technician), Northern VIT in Penang (web developer), Applied Business Systems in Kuala Lumpur (Oracle consultant), and so on, and on. The service is available in English, French, German and Spanish.
In the past few weeks I have signed up to two job hunting services which are especially popular with Indians looking for their piece of the pie, and which promise a radical redefinition of the way we work and do business in the interconnected world. I can't say I have fully grasped their potential at this early stage, but I am sure the potential is there, it just takes a bit of work making it work. It seems to me the key to thriving and surviving in today's world is to establish a network, and then to extend that network as wide as possible, and make yourself known. Even if we live in a lonely village in the Saharan Desert we have a network, and the Internet allows us to expand our networks, right to the farthest corners of the world. You just have to be a player to make it happen.
The last time I visited, there were 113 jobs advertised in Malaysia, compared to just one at the Sandown facility in South Africa, and none whatsoever for the Motorola complex in Lagos, Nigeria. The point is, if you are African and are interested in a career at Motorola, you might have to get yourself to Malaysia to find it. The way it seems to me, Motorola is changing direction, and seeking a kind of symbiotic relationship with the Malaysian Government in order to survive.
Solo Gig: http://www.sologig.com/.
This is billed as the place where freelancers and employers meet! If you like the idea of working from home (it certainly appeals to me!) then Solo Gig could offer you some hopeful leads. Jobs are available in such fields as web design, writing, editing and translation, database development and networking, architecture and telemarketing. In conjunction with CareerBuilder.com, Sologig has three times more projects than the other leading freelance websites. Don't get lost in the shuffle! Employers outnumber Freelancers five to one, which create good odds for the jobseeker willing to take a punt on the freelance side.
Tip Top Jobs: http://my.tiptopjob.com/.
A Malaysian online recruitment resource offering a service to both jobseekers and job providers. The jobs are sorted according to industry sector -- there is everything from accountancy and advertising, at the lower reaches of the alphabet, to travel and tourism at the other end. Shouldn't there be a category for zoology? isn't that an important field? No, they don't have any jobs for zoologists at the moment at tip Top Jobs, but they do have plenty of IT offerings. This site is also good for Malaysians looking for jobs in other parts of the world.
STUDY AT A MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITY IN AFRICA
THE Malaysian National News Agency Bernama reported on June 29, 2008: "The Limkokwing University of Creative Technology has taken the African continent by storm since it set up a campus in Botswana last year and another 15 African countries have invited it to do the same.
"Campuses in Lesotho and Swaziland are scheduled to open this year and like Botswana, are registered as full universities and to be followed next by Zambia, Namibia, Kenya, Sudan and Mauritius.
"Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing, its founder and president, told Bernama here recently that outside Africa, Eastern Europe and the Middle East were also in the pipeline to add to campuses already established in Cambodia, Britain, China and Indonesia apart from its main Malaysian campus.
"The university started as Limkokwing Institute of Creative Technology with 200 students in 1991, growing to 20,000 students now from 130 countries. Its Malaysian campus is home to students from 42 out of Africa's 52 nations.
"Lim's affinity with Africa stems from the personal relationship he built with former South African president Nelson Mandela whom he described as the world's greatest living statesman.
"'It's upon Mandela's vision that I have built my own vision to work with the people of Africa to develop Africa's next generation of leaders and thinkers to help build human capital of Africa," he said at a ceremony here on June 19 where the university conferred an honorary Doctorate in Humanity on Mandela..."
STUDY IN MALAYSIA
CLICK here for the complete guide to study solutions in Malaysia. As the Kyoto Review publication in Japan has pointed out:
At the same time, Malaysia has been working
hard for several years to establish itself as a regional education hub. The
government has continuously propagated the merits and strengths of a Malaysian
tertiary education, which is offered by a growing number of private colleges
and universities. Some of these institutions have collaborated with
universities in the U.S., Britain, and Australia. In addition, Curtin
University, Monash University, and University of Nottingham have established
branch campuses in Malaysia. Private tertiary education has become quite a big
industry in Malaysia in recent years.
Now the Malaysian government sees students from the
wider Islamic world as a potential growth market for the private education
sector. This ambition received a boost when the United States imposed strict
visa regulations on foreign students, a move that has prompted quite a few from
both Arab and non-Arab Islamic countries to pursue their education in Malaysia.
In a recent meeting with a group of
students from the Middle East, this writer was informed that many of them chose to further their
studies in the fields of Engineering, Computer Science and Information
Technology (IT) in Malaysian private universities and colleges.[1]
Since the medium of instruction in these private institutions is English,
students have to first enroll in the English language program. Many of the
foreign students who are now attending English-language proficiency courses
available in Malaysia come mainly from China and
the Middle East.
Table 4. Enrolment of Foreign Students in Malaysiafs Private
Institutions
of Higher Learning (selected countries, 1999-2003)
No.
Country
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
1.
Afghanistan
4
9
21
62
64
2.
Bangladesh
141
201
353
888
2182
3.
Egypt
9
4
14
27
55
4.
Indonesia
7115
6741
5336
7503
7744
5.
Iran
46
84
145
278
406
6.
Iraq
22
26
126
202
212
7.
Jordan
4
8
97
156
163
8.
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
40
39
281
402
460
9.
1
4
4
9
8
10.
Maldives
273
409
295
614
602
11.
Oman
65
176
89
415
455
12.
Pakistan
191
334
501
722
1290
13.
Palestine
2
0
8
38
58
14.
Saudi Arabia
12
22
15
120
148
15.
Somalia
24
60
68
155
212
16.
Sudan
32
54
237
439
536
17.
Turkey
0
8
14
66
77
18.
United Arab Emirates
0
0
5
7
6
19.
Yemen
38
95
121
538
800
Source:
Department of Private Education, Ministry of Education, Malaysia.
JOBS FOR AFRICANS AROUND THE WORLD