Govt unveils roadmap to tap new markets for workers

Dhaka, Dec 5 (bdprem.com) -- The government has made a plan to expand markets for migrant workers abroad, an adviser said Wednesday. The expatriates welfare and overseas employment ministry prepared a seven-point strategy paper to create new markets for migrant workers and ensure welfare. Your Ad Here At a press conference at the ministry, expatriates welfare and overseas employment adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury said: "We'll take a fresh initiative to find new markets, apart from the present manpower export markets." The strategy was aimed at finding new markets, expanding present markets, enhancing efficiency of workers, creating awareness among people of less developed areas about manpower exports, ensuring proper use of remittances and reducing deception with workers. The government also planned to work in coordination with the World Trade Organisation and International Organisation for Migration to ensure rights of immigrants. "It would be possible for us to ensure rights and welfare of our workers if we had worked through coordination with such organisations," the adviser said. He said the government also planned to send more workers to the countries such as Oman, UAE, Qatar and Libya employing many Bangladeshi workers by enhancing quality. A strict monitoring system will be launched to reduce deception with workers. Law enforcing agencies and the task force will be used for the purpose, Iftekhar added. Iftekhar stressed enhancing knowledge of the workers about information technology and English language. "We want to make our workers completely efficient." An initiative was also taken to send workers from the less developed areas for work abroad, which will help eradicate poverty in the areas such as the northern monga-prone area, the adviser added. According to an estimate, 5.26 lakh Bangladeshi workers went abroad from January to November and the government gave the green light to 7.64 lakh workers in the same period. "It's a record," the adviser said. From January to November, immigrants remitted $5.78 billion or Tk 40,323 crore to Bangladesh. The adviser hoped the amount of remittances would exceed $6 billion in 2007 if the trend continued. An official of the ministry said the government estimated that 53,12,877 Bangladeshi workers went abroad from 1976 to Nov 2007 and remitted Tk 2,48,159 crore. Asked about Malaysia's ban on Bangladeshi workers, the adviser said the government did not receive any letter from the Malaysian government on the matter. He hoped all problems would be solved soon if there was any. He said that up to 3,000 workers will be able to go to South Korea soon in line with a memorandum of understanding signed between the countries.