ABSTRACT
The emigration of Sudanese professionals and skilled workers to Saudi Arabia increased during the 1970s and 1980s, with important implications for both societies. In turn, Saudi Arabia imported agricultural crops and leather products from Sudan. However, the contemporary exodus of Sudanese nationals to Saudi Arabia for work is a contemporary phenomenon. A comparison of the economic conditions in the Sudan and Saudi Arabia suggests that the poorer Sudanese economy is a push factor for emigration into Saudi Arabia, which has acquired a strong economy due to enormous returns from oil-exportations. According to the International Labor Organization Information Bulletin, the gradual completion of development schemes in Saudi Arabia and most of the Gulf Emirates has been accompanied with a return migration of thousands of emigrants from the labor-exporting countries. Internal migration is often an intermediate stage in the movement pattern of the Sudanese labor force.
