Manpower export holds out new promise
Sunday, 8 July 2007
Shahiduzzaman Khan
EUROPEAN countries including the Scandinavian ones, are in urgent need of at least one million nurses, care workers and service providers where the rate of population is declining. Bangladesh can avail this opportunity right at this moment if it can fulfil the European Union (EU) requirements.
What the government is required to do at this time is to take timely measures for skill development of overseas job seekers. Learning spoken English should be made compulsory for the job seekers. The government through its official channels abroad should also invite the authorities concerned of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Greenland, Iceland and Pacific Rim countries to visit Bangladesh and explore the potentials of Bangladeshi job seekers.
Available reports suggest that country's manpower export to traditional markets in the Middle East countries was most likely to decline in the near future for various reasons. As such, there is a need to convey the message to the outside world that there is both skilled and unskilled manpower in the country, as employers of many countries are not aware about availability of quality manpower in Bangladesh.
In another development, the present interim government will soon invite the authority concerned of Australia to visit Bangladesh for a study on manpower recruitment. Besides, it is also planning to invite authorities concerned of some European, North American and Scandinavian countries, which require skilled and semi-skilled manpower, to visit Bangladesh. At the initial stage, an official invitation letter will be sent to Australia soon. The Australian team, while on its visit, will basically study training facilities offered by different government and non-governmental institutions. After assessment, the team will set a guideline to help the job seekers meet the country's requirement. The job seekers, who will meet the requirement, will be given certificates to go to Australia.
Besides, as a part of its sustained manpower export strategy, the government will arrange training course for the jobseekers to South Korea. Bangladesh Overseas Employment Services Ltd (BOESL), a state arm for manpower export, will soon invite applications from the job seekers on Korean language training course. About 25,000 job seekers will be recruited by South Korea at the initial stage.
Indeed, lack of monitoring of the manpower travel agencies which have been mushrooming throughout the country is the major reason of human trafficking and illegal manpower export. According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, outdated laws to authorise the travel agencies and recruiting agents do not address the emerging issues in the sector, which is facing new challenges in illegal migration and trafficking everyday.
Besides the above reason, lack of coordination and integrated action by the concerned ministries to solve the problem is responsible for the rise in illegal migration and trafficking. Despite the increase of trafficking and illegal migration, there has never been an inter-ministerial meeting among the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Home. This is highly an unwarranted event. According to a civil aviation ministry spokesman, there are 1,800 legal travel agents throughout the country. Since 2001 the ministry has cancelled the licences of 238 travel agents.
In fact, the civil aviation ministry, that provides licences to the travel agencies under the Bangladesh Travel Agencies Registration and Control Ordinance 1977, does not have any power to take action against any travel agencies involved in any malpractice. It also does not have any power to take action against any travel agencies which are not authorised by it. The ministry has not taken any initiative to monitor the travel agents although these agents have been sending people abroad for many years. However, establishment of mobile courts could solve the problem of monitoring their activities.
According to the expatriates' welfare ministry, there are 740 authorised recruiting agencies. The (Bureau of Manpower Employment & Training) BMET authorities often cancelled the licence of any recruiting agency involved in malpractice, but by filing writ petitions against the cancel order in the High Court the agencies continue to function. Due to lack of proper regulations the recruiting agencies that get licence from BMET also work as travel agencies, and during the Hajj time they get Hajj licence. Most of the travel agencies fail to fulfil the requirement.
However, in the context of present day scenario, the Emigration Ordinance 1982 needs be amended to address the current and emerging issues. There is a need for informing the people not to go abroad without the clearance of the BMET. The ministry has set up 12 labour wings in the foreign offices in Malaysia, Singapore and Middle East countries which verify any offer of recruitments in those countries.
Very recently, Malaysia had resumed import of manpower from Bangladesh, keeping a provision for recruiting 50 per cent of foreign workers required for Malaysia's growing industrial sector from Bangladesh. Some 100,000 to 150,000 Bangladeshis are expected to be sent to Malaysia by the end of this year. Malaysian companies can also absorb up to 300,000 Bangladeshi workers by next year.
Kuala Lumpur's decision to formally withdraw restriction on recruitment of Bangladeshi workers was made immediately after Dhaka approved a project for a second national highway, which will be a toll road, between Dhaka and Chittagong to be commissioned on the build-own-operate-transfer basis by the Malaysia-based Azimat Consortium. However, Bangladesh government has engaged the state-run BOESL in the process of selection, training and export of workers as demanded by the Malaysian immigration officials. Both the countries underlined the need for strengthening regulatory control over the manpower export business so that nobody was cheated in any way and deprived of due salaries. It was decided that any kind of irregularities such as corruption and cheating in exporting manpower would not be tolerated and the recruiting agencies have to follow the rules and regulations in this regard.
Meanwhile, the government has failed to reduce the cost of migration to South Korea that shot up to Tk 0.50 million, since it has no control over the recruiting agencies. Recently, the Korean Federation of Small Businesses awarded the contracts to four local agencies for supplying 200 trainee workers and fixed the fee at Tk 0.19 million, but the agencies are charging Tk 0.80 million each. It is, thus, essential that the government should update the rate of migration cost. For example, the government fixed the rate at Tk 70,000 to send a worker to Malaysia a few years back, but it is now much more as the value of dollar went up. Taking the advantage, the agencies are charging higher fees violating the rate fixed by the government.
Remittances from the non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) have touched $6.0 billion dollar-mark recently -- which is all time high. This hard earned money of the expatriates is contributing significantly to the country foreign exchange reserve. Such reserve will continue to rise if the government gives adequate attention to the manpower sector.
Experts relating to manpower export business opined that tough legislations should be enacted to stop export of manpower dishonestly. Malpractice in manpower export is considered a worst problem in recruitment for foreign jobs. Such malpractice must be curbed at all costs to safeguard the country's 'lost' image and interests.
EUROPEAN countries including the Scandinavian ones, are in urgent need of at least one million nurses, care workers and service providers where the rate of population is declining. Bangladesh can avail this opportunity right at this moment if it can fulfil the European Union (EU) requirements.
What the government is required to do at this time is to take timely measures for skill development of overseas job seekers. Learning spoken English should be made compulsory for the job seekers. The government through its official channels abroad should also invite the authorities concerned of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Greenland, Iceland and Pacific Rim countries to visit Bangladesh and explore the potentials of Bangladeshi job seekers.
Available reports suggest that country's manpower export to traditional markets in the Middle East countries was most likely to decline in the near future for various reasons. As such, there is a need to convey the message to the outside world that there is both skilled and unskilled manpower in the country, as employers of many countries are not aware about availability of quality manpower in Bangladesh.
In another development, the present interim government will soon invite the authority concerned of Australia to visit Bangladesh for a study on manpower recruitment. Besides, it is also planning to invite authorities concerned of some European, North American and Scandinavian countries, which require skilled and semi-skilled manpower, to visit Bangladesh. At the initial stage, an official invitation letter will be sent to Australia soon. The Australian team, while on its visit, will basically study training facilities offered by different government and non-governmental institutions. After assessment, the team will set a guideline to help the job seekers meet the country's requirement. The job seekers, who will meet the requirement, will be given certificates to go to Australia.
Besides, as a part of its sustained manpower export strategy, the government will arrange training course for the jobseekers to South Korea. Bangladesh Overseas Employment Services Ltd (BOESL), a state arm for manpower export, will soon invite applications from the job seekers on Korean language training course. About 25,000 job seekers will be recruited by South Korea at the initial stage.
Indeed, lack of monitoring of the manpower travel agencies which have been mushrooming throughout the country is the major reason of human trafficking and illegal manpower export. According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, outdated laws to authorise the travel agencies and recruiting agents do not address the emerging issues in the sector, which is facing new challenges in illegal migration and trafficking everyday.
Besides the above reason, lack of coordination and integrated action by the concerned ministries to solve the problem is responsible for the rise in illegal migration and trafficking. Despite the increase of trafficking and illegal migration, there has never been an inter-ministerial meeting among the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Home. This is highly an unwarranted event. According to a civil aviation ministry spokesman, there are 1,800 legal travel agents throughout the country. Since 2001 the ministry has cancelled the licences of 238 travel agents.
In fact, the civil aviation ministry, that provides licences to the travel agencies under the Bangladesh Travel Agencies Registration and Control Ordinance 1977, does not have any power to take action against any travel agencies involved in any malpractice. It also does not have any power to take action against any travel agencies which are not authorised by it. The ministry has not taken any initiative to monitor the travel agents although these agents have been sending people abroad for many years. However, establishment of mobile courts could solve the problem of monitoring their activities.
According to the expatriates' welfare ministry, there are 740 authorised recruiting agencies. The (Bureau of Manpower Employment & Training) BMET authorities often cancelled the licence of any recruiting agency involved in malpractice, but by filing writ petitions against the cancel order in the High Court the agencies continue to function. Due to lack of proper regulations the recruiting agencies that get licence from BMET also work as travel agencies, and during the Hajj time they get Hajj licence. Most of the travel agencies fail to fulfil the requirement.
However, in the context of present day scenario, the Emigration Ordinance 1982 needs be amended to address the current and emerging issues. There is a need for informing the people not to go abroad without the clearance of the BMET. The ministry has set up 12 labour wings in the foreign offices in Malaysia, Singapore and Middle East countries which verify any offer of recruitments in those countries.
Very recently, Malaysia had resumed import of manpower from Bangladesh, keeping a provision for recruiting 50 per cent of foreign workers required for Malaysia's growing industrial sector from Bangladesh. Some 100,000 to 150,000 Bangladeshis are expected to be sent to Malaysia by the end of this year. Malaysian companies can also absorb up to 300,000 Bangladeshi workers by next year.
Kuala Lumpur's decision to formally withdraw restriction on recruitment of Bangladeshi workers was made immediately after Dhaka approved a project for a second national highway, which will be a toll road, between Dhaka and Chittagong to be commissioned on the build-own-operate-transfer basis by the Malaysia-based Azimat Consortium. However, Bangladesh government has engaged the state-run BOESL in the process of selection, training and export of workers as demanded by the Malaysian immigration officials. Both the countries underlined the need for strengthening regulatory control over the manpower export business so that nobody was cheated in any way and deprived of due salaries. It was decided that any kind of irregularities such as corruption and cheating in exporting manpower would not be tolerated and the recruiting agencies have to follow the rules and regulations in this regard.
Meanwhile, the government has failed to reduce the cost of migration to South Korea that shot up to Tk 0.50 million, since it has no control over the recruiting agencies. Recently, the Korean Federation of Small Businesses awarded the contracts to four local agencies for supplying 200 trainee workers and fixed the fee at Tk 0.19 million, but the agencies are charging Tk 0.80 million each. It is, thus, essential that the government should update the rate of migration cost. For example, the government fixed the rate at Tk 70,000 to send a worker to Malaysia a few years back, but it is now much more as the value of dollar went up. Taking the advantage, the agencies are charging higher fees violating the rate fixed by the government.
Remittances from the non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) have touched $6.0 billion dollar-mark recently -- which is all time high. This hard earned money of the expatriates is contributing significantly to the country foreign exchange reserve. Such reserve will continue to rise if the government gives adequate attention to the manpower sector.
Experts relating to manpower export business opined that tough legislations should be enacted to stop export of manpower dishonestly. Malpractice in manpower export is considered a worst problem in recruitment for foreign jobs. Such malpractice must be curbed at all costs to safeguard the country's 'lost' image and interests.