Very little is in sight on the manpower export front to inspire hope. The ups and downs in inward remittance appear as regular news stories in the print media, obviously because of its very high stake in the economy since decades. The economic implications of remittance, besides catering to the dire needs of a large segment of the population, are many and diverse, and should in all fairness be looked at positively. However, the question -- how long a remittance-dependent economy can pursue and sustain its development programmes is a different, and indeed a crucial one.
The flow of inward remittances rose by nearly 15 per cent in November 2014 following a slide in the previous month. Total remittances from Bangladeshi nationals working abroad were estimated at $1.17 billion in November 2014, up by $14.70 per cent from the level of the previous month. In October last, remittance stood at $1.02 billion, according to the central bank sources.
It has been reported that remittances have been much eased in recent times with the opening up of numerous exchange houses across the globe. This may have facilitated the expat workers to send money through appropriate channels, and thus contributed to the rise in remittances lately. According to a report titled 'International Labour Migration from Bangladesh 2014: Achievement and Challenges' the country received remittance amounting to $ 14.50 billion till the third week of December, 2014. If the inflow continues, the amount will stand at about $ 15 billion at the end of the year, reflecting a 5.3 per cent growth over that of the previous year, the report mentioned. The report said that despite the globally lower migration trend, inbound remittance has increased because of some initiatives by the Bangladesh Bank, such as -- reduction in transfer rate, road-show in the Middle-Eastern countries, and remittance transfer through mobile device etc.
At the moment, it is remittance that matters. And for this to happen, increased export of manpower is a priority. The government, one may say, is experimenting on the subject. At the initial stage, people seemed elated as the plans drummed up by the authorities promised secure, cost-effective and more than anything, hassle-free movement of overseas job seekers. It all started with the government-to-government (G-to-G) method, evolved through consultations with the concerned authorities in the destination job markets overseas. But this has virtually failed to bring any positive results in case of Malaysia, the country with which G-to-G was meant to bring significant benefit for the job seekers. The G-to-G deal is now stuck. The indications are clear that the resounding promises made by the government, especially the ex-pat minister, have not succeeded in materialising the least of what was expected. Worse, a lack of coordination between the designated agencies of the two governments has allegedly pushed things to where they are now - a stalemate.
At home, the row over manpower export between the ex-pat ministry and the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) is well known. It sparked soon after the deal got inked between the government of Malaysia and the government of Bangladesh in September 2012. The reasons, however, were not too far-fetched to discern. As the platform of the country's private recruiters, BAIRA is not likely to feel comfortable with the government's move to take a portion from what it considered its own pie. The government's stand at that time looked convincing as the G-to-G arrangement was presented to the nation as the most viable, cost-effective and efficient method of recruiting overseas jobseekers. This augured well in view of the incidents of increasing number of jobseekers being routinely lured and tricked by private recruiters and more often than not, taken for the most unholy of rides. In fact, it was the government's intent to put a halt on fraud and swindling that drew support from most quarters, although there were doubts as to the competence of government agencies to handle the task.
But what has happened over the last two years is pathetically gloomy for the jobseekers themselves as well as the country. It is by now well known that despite the intent of relieving the workers of much of their plight at a reduced cost with welfare benefits in their workplaces, the results so far have remained far short of what was desired. The slow and lackluster move has already dampened the confidence of the jobseekers in the government channel. As a result, desperate groups are seen either being drowned in the deep seas or detained in foreign custodies. This has also provided the unscrupulous private recruiters the chance to regain their stronghold on the easy catches, who disillusioned by the G-to-G are now more frantic than ever in trying their luck through whatever means.
Concerned quarters allege that while the expatriate ministry's initiatives did not materialise as planned, lack of effective diplomatic efforts has also contributed to the dampening of the overall situation. Added to these, the raging tension in the Middle East -- the main destination for Bangladesh's manpower export -- has stagnated the situation as most of the Gulf countries have put a halt on workers' visa. Experts, however, hold that although the Gulf market is shrinking, new destinations like South Africa, Latin America and East Europe could be potential markets for Bangladeshi jobseekers. Under the circumstances, the government has to work a way out to bolster export of man power, preferably by way of looking for newer destinations and adding value to the skills of the workers.
wasiahmed.bd@hotmail.com
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