Focus on creating alternative labour markets

In recent years, sending workers abroad has increased significantly, although the rate of sending skilled workers has not grown at the same pace. In fact, in the last fiscal year, it actually declined. However, since the interim government assumed office, there has been a renewed emphasis on sending skilled workers abroad. Agreements have been made to send workers to skilled labour markets such as Japan and Europe. Officials note that it may take several years to fully realise the benefits of these initiatives.

To work abroad, every Bangladeshi worker must obtain clearance from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).

According to BMET data, a total of 1,198,900 workers went abroad in the 2023–24 fiscal year, of which about 26 per cent were skilled workers. In the last fiscal year (2024–25), 1,015,312 workers went abroad, with skilled workers making up 18 per cent. Meanwhile, only 3 per cent of workers were professionals. Combined skilled and semi-skilled workers accounted for 38 per cent, while the remaining 59 per cent went abroad as unskilled labour.

Against this backdrop, International Migrants Day is being observed today, 18 December, alongside National Expatriates Day. This year, the theme of the day is: “Go abroad with skills, build the homeland with remittances.”

To mark the occasion, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare organised a programme on Wednesday at Osmani Memorial Hall. During the event, benefits such as insurance, medical and financial support, compensation, and scholarships for expatriates’ children were distributed. In addition, recognition was given to Commercially Important Persons (CIP) and banks that receive high remittance inflows.

Discussions with recruiting agencies, private development organisations, and government officials involved in sending workers abroad reveal that the recruitment process largely operates through brokers or personal contacts. As a result, worker deployment remains limited to a few countries, primarily in the construction and infrastructure sectors, which require minimal skills and offer low wages. Beyond a few Middle Eastern and Asian countries, labour markets have not expanded significantly, and adequate infrastructure for training skilled workers has not been developed.

Ali Haider Chowdhury, former secretary general of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), told Prothom Alo that worker deployment remains constrained in limited labour markets based on unskilled labour demand. New labour markets have not yet been created. However, demand for skilled workers is emerging even in the Middle East. To compete in these markets, sending skilled workers is essential.

The Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment has stated that Japan, South Korea, and several European countries have been identified as initial target markets for sending skilled workers. A special training project has been launched to improve language skills and technical expertise, with the goal of sending 100,000 skilled workers to Japan over five years through the newly established “Japan Cell.”

For seasonal labour, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed with a province in South Korea, and worker deployment has already begun. An MoU with Italy has been signed to send both seasonal and non-seasonal workers.

Additionally, the process for issuing clearance for expatriate workers to go to developed countries has been digitalised, and service delivery has been decentralised. In Singapore, the expedited worker deployment system has been reinstated.

From 1 January 2026, under the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) Talent Partnership Programme, or independently, a comprehensive language training programme will be implemented to send skilled workers to high-demand labour markets such as Japan, Germany, and Italy.

Professor Asif Nazrul, advisor to the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, highlighted these initiatives. He told Prothom Alo: “We have only just begun. In the past six months, over 6,000 workers have been sent to Japan, more than a 50 per cent increase compared to the previous year. We have launched an international nursing certification preparation course and have started sending skilled nurses to Europe. If our various programmes continue, we expect significant success in sending skilled workers within the next three years.”

According to BMET data, Bangladesh sends workers to 168 countries. However, from January to 15 December of this year, workers went to 141 countries. A total of 1,066,759 workers were deployed, though in 13 countries only a single worker was sent.

More than 10,000 workers were sent to only eight countries, while over 100,000 workers went to just two countries—100,000 to Qatar and more than 700,000 to Saudi Arabia.

In the past, there have been various complaints about the large-scale deployment of workers abroad. Many workers fail to find jobs overseas and end up becoming undocumented. Some are even arrested by the police before returning home. Moreover, networks have operated around sending unskilled labour. However, the government has now emphasised developing skilled workers.

Currently, 44 Technical Training Centres (TTCs) offer courses in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean. Under an agreement between BMET and Saudi Arabia’s Takamol Company, 15 TTCs have gained the capacity to conduct skill assessments over the past year. Previously, caregiver training was not offered at TTCs. With rising demand abroad, this programme has now been included.

Sector insiders note that the Philippines has long succeeded in producing skilled workers. In contrast, for many years, employment of Bangladeshi workers abroad has largely depended on sending unskilled labour to the Middle East. A worker in the Middle East typically earns three to four times less than they could in Japan or European countries. Despite this, last fiscal year recorded the highest expatriate earnings in Bangladesh’s history. To sustain this growth in remittances, the interim government has prioritised sending workers to skilled labour markets in countries such as Japan and across Europe.

Private development organisations in the migration sector are also running programmes to produce skilled workers. For instance, RMMRU (Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit) operates programmes in 25 unions across five upazilas of Comilla. One of the key goals of these programmes is to ensure that trained workers can work independently and sustainably abroad.

Tasnim Siddiqui, acting executive director of RMMRU, told Prothom Alo: “To send skilled workers, the necessary groundwork must first be done. There are no visible steps to expand technical education in schools, colleges, and madrasas. Skills acquired from TTCs are not internationally recognized. It is essential to improve quality and ensure that their certificates are recognised globally.”