'Mass awareness against human trafficking underscored'
Speakers at a meeting to exchange views urged people from all walks of life to tackle human trafficking which is a hated crime.
Many Bangladeshi young people are losing lives at Mediterranean while illegally going to European countries, they said.
They suggested that alongside applying the law to eliminate human trafficking, mass awareness has to be created.
They were speaking on Friday at a meeting to exchange views at Town Hall in Shariyatpur.
The foreign ministry organised this event as part of the initiatives in stopping human trafficking and encouraging safe and legal pathways for labour migration.
Speaking as a guest of honour, Italian ambassador to Bangladesh Enrico Nunziata said the number of Bangladeshi migrants to Italy will be increased in the future as a discussion over a new agreement between two countries is underway.
He said, “This agreement will allow more Bangladeshis to work in Italy by using a reserved quota, 3000, to Bangladesh, which could even be increased if necessary.”
Enrico Nunziata said the first consultation of the agreement took place on 30 June at the ministry of foreign affairs (MOFA) with an official delegation from Italian MOFA and ministry of interior.
The agreement will also include cooperation on various issues, including fighting against traffickers, establishing a mechanism for matching the labour supply with the demand and reintegration policies for returnees, he added.
The ambassador, however, claimed Italy has registered 28,405 irregular migrants in the first six months of 2022, which is 31 per cent higher than that of last year. Of the total migrants, Bangladeshis ranked first with 4,606 landings followed by Egyptians, Tunisians and Afghanis.
Talking about the perilous journey to Europe via sea route, Enrico Nunziata said 3,231 deaths were registered across the Mediterranean and North West Atlantic route.
He said this humanitarian issue must be handled by adopting an integrated approach, including fighting against traffickers, raising awareness on irregular migration and offering a range of alternative pathways to labour migrants.