MUSLIM MAIDS FROM MINDANAO OPTION FOR MUSLIM EMPLOYERS

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 4 (Bernama) -- With the ongoing freeze on the supply of
Indonesian maids, Malaysians can now opt for Muslim maids from Mindanao, the
Philippines.

This will be made possible with the signing of a memorandum of understanding
(MoU) here today between the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)
authority and a group of 20 foreign maid agencies from Malaysia (G20).

G20 chairman Raja Zulkeply Dahalan said the cooperation would enable
them to supply quality housemaids with a reasonable fee to meet the demand for
Muslim maids from Muslim employers.

"Besides Indonesia, we are also facing difficulty in getting Muslim
housemaids from countries such as Cambodia," he told reporters after the signing
of the MoU.

Meanwhile, ARMM Department of Labour and Employment Secretary Myra
Mangkabung Alih said the programme would help many families in the region to
reduce poverty.

"According to the 2006 statistics, 55 out of 100 families in Mindanao are
poor and the number is increasing every year. Through this programme, we hope
to provide employment and better income to more people."

She said 6,000 well-trained maids could be deployed to Malaysia each year,
adding that recruiting would begin at the end of March and both parties were
still negotiating on a suitable standard salary.

-- BERNAMA