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CA urges Malaysia to issue multiple-entry visa for Bangladeshi workers

January 14, 2025 00:00:00


Malaysian High Commissioner Mohd Shuhada Othman called on Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka on Monday.

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus urged Malaysia on Monday to issue multiple-entry visas for Bangladeshi workers employed in the country to facilitate their return home when required, reports BSS.

He raised the issue when Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Mohd Shuhada Othman called on him at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka.

The chief adviser also urged the High Commissioner to facilitate the entry of 18,000 Bangladeshi workers who missed the deadline to join their work in the Southeast Asian country in May last year.

The Malaysian envoy said a joint technical committee featuring the officials of Malaysia and Bangladesh held a meeting in this regard in Kuala Lumpur on December 31, and a similar meeting was planned on Tuesday.

Recalling his meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in Dhaka in October, the chief adviser hoped that Malaysia would expedite the process so that the next batch of Bangladeshi workers can plan for migrating to the country for work.

He congratulated Malaysia for taking over as the chair of ASEAN from 1 January 2025 and also sought the country's support for Bangladesh's bid to become a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN and in turn become a full member.

Prof Yunus also conveyed to the high commissioner that Bangladesh seeks support from ASEAN in the upcoming International Conference on the Rohingya Crisis to be convened by the UN in 2025 in line with the UNGA Resolution 79/182.

He urged the new Malaysian high commissioner, who was appointed in December 2024, to work on bringing more Malaysian investment to Bangladesh and relocating Malaysian factories to Bangladesh to take the benefit of Bangladesh's youth forces.

An FE report adds : Commerce adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin wants to ensure balanced trade, including increased bilateral relations, with Malaysia.

He said this during a meeting with Malaysian high commissioner Mohd Shuhada Othman at the Secretariat on Monday.

Bilateral trade and possible future investment were discussed at the talks.

According to the adviser, free trade agreement is very crucial for bilateral trade. Bangladesh has already has started negotiations to ink such deals with South Korea, Japan and Singapore.

Bangladesh and Malaysia should begin a consultation with a view to increasing trade to benefit the two countries.

Malaysian manpower market is important for Bangladesh as a significant amount of remittance comes from the Southeast Asian country.

Mr Bashir sought Malaysian investment at special economic zones here.

He also sought to further increase the export of palm oil to Bangladesh as demand for such oil increases during the holy month of Ramadan.

The Malaysian envoy said his country has invested in the electronic chip and semiconductor sector, adding that there is a huge demand for skilled manpower, including designers, in the sector.

He also assured Bangladesh of sustained cooperation to make skilled manpower.

The high commissioner suggested preparing halal foods to enter the Malaysian market.

The volume of bilateral trade between the two countries was $2,878 million in fiscal year 2023-24, including Bangladesh's only $294.50 million worth of export.

rezamumu@gmail.com


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