There can be roles for expat tradesmen in the Middle East, but mostly in supervisory or management roles. As mentioned earlier, there is nearly a neverending supply of skilled tradesmen from the Philippines, India, Pakistan, and to an increasing extent, Africa.
As a Canadian expat that will command a significantly higher compensation package (we need higher salary, tend to demand better living accommodations, etc), your friend will need to fill a role that these other expats cannot. Pretty much universally, our command of English and managerial type problem solving is better.
So to answer the original question of how to get these spots, well, I'm not actually that knowledgeable on that subject. There are thousands of recruiting agencies based in Dubai that recruit for the whole region. Check LinkedIn.
But times are tough in the oil business, and this includes the Middle East. Layoffs are happening in the UAE en masse, the work you asked about in Northern Iraq is all but dried up. Southern Iraq is still operating. Maybe places that have lower production costs like Turkmenistan or Azerbaijan are good options... I don't really know for sure.
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