Staff Reporter :
At least two lakh Bangladeshi workers are likely to go to Malaysia this year, as the government has started the recruitment of workers, a few months after the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Malaysia.
Besides, an agreement has also been signed with Greece to send workers through legal channel.
Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmed said this at the inauguration ceremony of 24 technical training centers built in different upazilas across the country including the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Centennial Technical Training Center in the city’s Osmani Memorial Auditorium on Thursday.
“Bangladeshi workers are likely to start for Malaysia soon. At least, one or two lakh will go to Malaysia within this year and it will be depended on how fast we can send them. Besides, demand may also come from Malaysia end,” Imran Ahmed said.
The government has already signed an agreement with Greece in sending Bangladeshi workers to that country, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister said and added “This is the first agreement with any European country forlabor markets. We were very interested in Greece because those who would go there would be able to go through legal channels and work legally.”
The minister also hoped that they could be able to open labour markets by making such agreements with several other countries in near future.
Earlier, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister said that the minimum salary of Bangladeshi workers will be 1,500 Malaysian Ringgit per month and the migration cost will be less than Tk1.6 lakh.
Imran Ahmed said according to the MoU signed in December 2021, five lakh people would migrate to Malaysia in five years.
Earlier on June 2, Malaysian Human Resources Minister M Saravanan informed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina that Malaysia has taken a five-year action plan for migrant workers and increased the minimum wage to RM1,500 (Tk30,436) that was RM1,200 earlier.
He said Bangladesh can earn $45 billion in remittances from Malaysia in the next five years.
Bangladeshi remitters sent $1.09 billion last year from Malaysia.
However, if other countries do not send workers to Malaysia-where the demand for manpower is huge – Bangladesh can send five lakh people there this year.
