Every knowledgeable person in Bangladesh knows that next to garment sector migrant workers are the second biggest source of foreign exchanga earning in the country. About eight million Bangladeshis working abroad, mostly in the Middle-Eest, send on average $15 billion as remittance every year to their families in the country. The poorer they are greater is their contribution as their families depend on money remitted. The white collar 'workers' send negligible amount out of their income because either they migrate with their whole family or their families back home have other sources of income. Ironically, the poor migrants (coming from poor families) have to pay more for their passage to foreign countries and also to send their remittance. Being illiterate or semi-literate, they fall easy prey to the predatory tactitcs of middlemen who extort high rates as fees for services rendered to them. Cases of migrants being cheated outright and left in the lurch are not rare. Then, there are the unfortunate ones who pay with their lives in transit to foreign lands or on arrival because of the negligence and deception of agents, local and foreign. Migrant workers, especially the blue collar ones, who have become a part of the economic backbone of the country, receive the raw deal almost from every quarters to which they turn to for help.
There was a time when migrant workers' problems were the internal affairs of the countries concerned. But as the number of migrants have increased worldwide and their problems have become public, international bodies and multi-lateral institutions are now paying attenation to their plight. This has the benefit of driving home the problems of migration to countries of their origin and also of destination. No country wants to be seen in unfavourable light over a sensitive issue brought to their notice by international organisations. Therefore, when international bodies publish a report, giving countrywise data and facts, the impact is great. Countries mentioned in the report have to take notice of what is written about them on the subject.
According to the Migration Governance Index 2016 prepared by the London-based Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU), Bangladesh has fared rather poorly in terms of migration governance. It secured poor grades in three out of five indicators that define overall migration governance according to EIU, the research arm of The Economist group. The study was commissioned by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), a UN body that oversees all affairs of migrants, both political and econonic. In this study, the IOM's concern was with the labour migration that takes place every year all accross the globe, and in increasing nunber because of both pull (demand) and push (supply) factors. In the present study the governance indicators conveying the condition of labourers in transit or at work have been graded on a scale of 0-10 where 10 is the best. The indicators were categorised as 'nascent': 0-2.49, 'emerging': 2.5-4.99, 'developed': 5-7.99 and 'mature': 7.5-10. In the indicator for institutional capacity Bangladesh has been shown as 'emerging' (2.5-4.99). For the indicators on migrant rights and safe and orderly migration the grade is the same i.e. 'emerging' (2.5-4.99). For the indicator under labour migration and management the category is graded as 'developed' (5-7.49). Only for the indicator under Regional and International Co-operation and Partnerships, the grade is shown in the 'mature' category.
From the gradation of the five indicators it is evident that migration governance in Bangladesh is not very satisfactory, though progress has been made in a few areas.
The study finds the major factors behind less than satisfactory performance in migraton governance as high migration cost, involvement of too many middlemen and visa trading. These had been pointed out in an earlier study by the World Bank. The present study has correctly pointed out these factors often lead to hundreds of thousands of migrants (of all countries) leaving undocumented and vulnerable to exploitation. Many of the migrants have to work long hours to recover the money they had spent to go abroad. The World Bank study had mentioned earlier that it takes nine months for a Bangladeshi migrant to Kuwait to earn the money he had spent to go there. Cost of visa account for a sizeable percentage of the total cost for going abroad to work. In many cases, the high cost is due to the rate charged by foreign embassies. There is scope for reducing this rate through negotiation by the government. Strict supervision over the recruiting will also bring the figure down. Governance in recruitment and post-migration management in the countries of destination can also reduce the cost.
The Migration Governance Index (MGI) in the study analysed governance indicators of Bolivia, Bangladesh, Italy, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, the Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and Turkey. Thus both host countries and countries from where migrants go have come under the seanner of the MGI. This is a welcome departure from the past practice where only countries sending migrant workers were studied to assess migration governance. Since the welfare of migrants depends on their treatment both at home and abroad, this comprehensive study will be helpful in improving the situation concerning migrants.
The study considered countries that provide a broad representation of economic development, type of migration profile, including sending and receiving countries and geographic scope. Alongside Bangladesh, only two other countries - Bahrain and Morocco - got the grade of 'emerging' in three indicators which is of some consolation to the country. The MGI graded Bangladesh as 'mature' in regional and international co-operation as it signed the International Convention on the Protection of All Migrant Workers, 1998 and the Convention of the Rights of Child, 1990. The country is also a member of the Budapest Process, the Bali Process and the Colombo Process and Abu Dhabi Dialogue that deal with migrants' rights. In addition, Bngladesh has several bilateral labour agreements in place. Its status as 'mature' in regional and international co-operation is well-established. But when it comes to implementation of the obligations under the conventions, processes and agreements much remains to be done. It is on this that government's attention and resources have to be concentrated.
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