Manpower export from Bangladesh
September 12, 2008
must congratulate Helal Ahmed Chowdhury, Managing Director of Pubali Bank, for coming up with a very innovative scheme for funding the prospective job seekers abroad. A substantial number of the expatriate wage earners are victims of the unscrupulous manpower agents who extract substantial sums from job seekers for employment abroad. Pubali Bank has initiated an expatriate lending project whereby the bank will advance money to the prospective job seekers who will repay the loan from their remittances.
I do have some personal experience regarding manpower export. It just so happens that when Bangladesh commenced exporting manpower and introduced the manpower license system my license number was number one. That is to say that I was the first to get hold of a manpower export license.
I was under the impression that we would be paid by the company that recruited workers from Bangladesh. I soon find out that it was the other way round. I had to pay money to the agents of the company-recruiting workers. Naturally, this had to be borne by the aspirant of a foreign job.
Since I could not accept the situation I surrendered my license. Some years later, when I started contracting work in the Emirates, I got a fresh license and I took at least 500 skilled workers and engineers without any charge, including payment of their airfare.
I happened to be to the promoter director of Al-Baraka Bank with the Dallah Group of Saudi Arabia as the foreign partner. Every year, at least four board meetings used to be held in Jeddah and, over the years, I attended at least 20 such meetings.
I found the Dallah Group to be a very enlightened business conglomerate working in at least a dozen countries. They were a larges employer and did not charge any money from the recruits. From the Bangladesh side, we have Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL), which is supposed to act as the recruiting agent in Bangladesh.
I am not familiar with the proportion of workers that go abroad through the BOESL, but I would imagine it would be a small fraction only. Also, BOESL simply does not have the funding and the facilities needed to contact all prospective employers abroad and to search for avenues of employment in new countries.
When we were working in Abu Dhabi, the Labour Counsellor in the Bangladesh Embassy would frequently request us for transport if he wished to visit Dubai. In other words, the embassy did not have cars or funds for the Labour Counsellor to visit prospective employers and, if possible, take them out for dinner.
This is probably the situation in every Bangladesh Embassy abroad. Therefore, this calls for the involvement of some agencies that would promote employment of Bangladesh workers, particularly skilled ones, in the large number of prospective employer countries. In this matter the government may give all facilities to BOESL, and maybe also involve NGOs like Brac and Grameen Bank to promote employment of Bangladesh workers abroad.
The whole question of manpower export has been analysed by the Royal Danish Embassy, Dhaka, in their report Vision 2015, Bangladesh as a leading manpower exporter January 2008, and by Bangladesh Enterprise Institute in their study September 2007 on Policy and Public Benefit Interventions, to help Bangladesh achieve annual migrant remittances of $ 30 billion by 2015, and also in a report by India Institute of Management Calcutta September 2007.
From these reports it can be seen that the possibilities of manpower export are enormous. For example, there is a worldwide shortage of qualified nurses, and Bangladesh has got practically millions of unemployed women. Other skilled workers like carpenters, plumbers, auto-mechanics, air-conditioning technicians, and so the list goes on. Also qualified technical workers like IT engineers, computer experts etc.
We have to acknowledge that Bangladesh is practically surviving on the remittances of Bangladesh workers. The total remittance in the year 2006-2007 was $ 5979 million, and the remittance for the period July-December 2007 was $ 3447 million. In other words, for the year 2007-2008 the remittance is likely to exceed $ 7 billion. Unfortunately, although the government and the country are reaping huge benefits from wage earners’ remittances, not enough is being done to administer the whole business of manpower export, which is really the goose that is laying the golden egg.
On January 10, 2008, I was travelling to Karachi by PIA. In the 30 seats of the Business Class there were only 5 genuine business class passengers and the rest were workers. There were 2 captains sitting behind me, and when I enquired if the other passengers had paid the full business class fare the captains replied in the affirmative.
I talked to the person sitting beside me and asked him about the purpose of his journey. He said that he was going to work as a labourer in Abu Dhabi and would be paid only 650 Dirhams per month. I recalled that in 1990 we were paying our workers a minimum salary of 1250 Dirhams.
On further enquiry I found out that the person next to me had neither any schooling nor vocational training. He had paid Tk 2.5 lacs for the job. Two things are revealed in this disclosure — the worker was not skilled and it would take him at least 5 years to recover his investment. The nexus of agents in Bangladesh and abroad would be the main beneficiaries.
Unless we break this nexus our skilled workers, who might command better salaries but cannot pay the premium, are deprived from the jobs and, secondly, a considerable amount of foreign exchange is paid through the backdoor to the agents abroad. All this money would have come to Bangladesh as workers’ remittances.
If one examines the whole manpower business in depth one would find numerous underhanded dealings, both by our recruiting agents and the agents abroad. False passports, false visas, false recruitments proliferate on our side. And overseas, if a company has 100 vacancies the foreign agents may take out permission for 1000 vacancies, and our workers who land up in the foreign country are left stranded without a job. We read frequently about these happenings in the newspapers.
Presently, almost all job seekers are hostage to the unscrupulous recruiting agents in Bangladesh and also to their counterparts in the country of employment. Actually, most large companies and government agencies abroad do not charge any money from the workers they employ.
The lower employees of the overseas companies tie up with some local agents and charge money for any recruitment. The entire business of manpower export requires review and professional management as Bangladesh can benefit much more than we are at present. The reports mentioned above should be studied and the measures suggested implemented.
Modernise technical edn to create skilled manpower
September 12, 2008
The engineering and technical education will have to be modernised and expanded across the country for creating skilled manpower which is one of the key ways to make the nation prosperous, speakers at a seminar said yesterday.
The second shift system in education should be introduced at engineering and technology-based public universities, while private universities should open different engineering, technology and technical departments, they added.
Amda Research Foundation organised the seminar on ‘Global Standard Engineering and Technical Education: Bangladesh Perspective’ at the National Press Club in the city.
The speakers called on the public and private sectors to set up new Technical Training Institutes (TTIs) for reducing unemployed youths and increasing manpower in the country.
Prof M Keramat Ali of Civil Engineering department at Ahsanullah University of Science, Engineering and Technology said the entire syllabus and content of technical education will have to revised and modernised for providing global standard technical education.
Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira) President Golam Mostafa said it is possible to earn 10 to 12 billion-dollar remittance through sending skilled manpower abroad.
“Bangladesh can become a middle-income country only by sending skilled manpower to foreign countries. For the reason, technical education is essential for making people skilled. The government and private sectors should set up new TTIs and provide modern training for youths,” he added.
Dr Abul Kalam Azad, dean of Engineering and Technology faculty at Eastern University, said the country will not make any progress without making ‘technical hands’. So, the number of technical training institutes will have to be increased.
Presided over by Amda Research Foundation Chairman Akbar Hossain, the seminar was addressed by Bangladesh Industrial Technical Assistant Centre Director General Ashish Kumar Pal and Prime University Vice Chancellor Dr MA Samad.
Manpower brokers in big hundi racket buy job demands
September 12, 2008
Such illegal transactions spawn enormous malpractices forcing a large part of low-skilled workers into penury. But the government measures fail miserably in negotiating with labourer receiving countries to check frauds.
In the ’80s, the employers used to bear the expenditure to hire workers from the country. But later a syndicate of visa traders enticed the employers to take cheaply paid workers from them in exchange of commission, creating dozens of ways to exploit the workers.
The issues have surfaced following recent turmoil in the Middle East and Malaysia where Bangladeshi workers were unpaid, underpaid, abused and deported or were forced to return home.
Exporting more trained people
September 12, 2008
GREATER remittance can boost the country’s foreign exchange reserve as well as its import operations and support development projects. The remittances would support the families of the overseas workers to come out of poverty faster.
It is estimated that remittance can double or treble within a short period of time to achieve the objectives. But that would require coordinated and comprehensive policy and action. Many potential workers cannot go abroad due to some constraints. They are unskilled and there is little demand for unskilled workers. Besides, it is not desirable to send unskilled workers as their wages are always substantially lower than skilled workers. The government can play a very useful role by providing training to them in diverse areas. It can set up many skill training centres throughout the country at its own cost for the purpose. Establishment of such institutions would be an investment to get more returns in the longer run.
The trainees should be admitted free of charge on the condition that they would pay back for their training costs once they get employment. Neither the trainer nor the trainee stands to lose anything from this arrangement. But it would create more and more trained people to meet the country’s domestic needs, leaving a surplus for overseas markets. It will facilitate sending out a greater number of skilled people for a higher remittance flow.
Finance is formidable barrier faced by the workers in going abroad. Many desperate workers sell all their possessions to pay the private manpower exporters. This risky method discourages many from going abroad. In this area, the government can play a useful role by asking the state-owned commercial banks to extend collateral free loans to the workers keen to go abroad. The loans could be progressively repaid once they get the employment abroad.
The Bangladesh missions abroad need to be activated to be supportive of a dynamic manpower export policy. The missions should be expected to make government-to-government contracts or between the manpower exporters and the foreign employers. They should be obliged to work to protect the workers’ interests without fail. If foreign employers breach the terms of contract by paying less or resort to other abuses, the missions should take up the matter diligently.
More remittance houses could be opened to provide the workers the needed service to ensure higher remittance flows. Bonds and special saving schemes could be introduced to benefit the expatriate workers. Investment schemes would inspire the expatriate Bangladeshis to invest more in them.
Proper motivation and incentives for the personnel would ensure efficient and honest functioning of the remittance houses abroad.
Overseas jobs fall sharply in August as demand shrinks in S Arabia, Malaysia
September 12, 2008
Overseas jobs for Bangladeshis fell by 38 per cent in August compared to the previous month due to a decline in demand in the Middle Eastern countries and Malaysia, officials said on Monday.
The Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training said in August 54,708 Bangladeshis found jobs abroad August, the lowest monthly figure since January, which is also 27.86 per cent down from the same period last year.
The number of jobs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and Malaysia, two of the major employers of Bangladeshis, came down sharply in August, dragging the total overseas jobs down by 37.97 per cent, said a BMET official.
Only 5121 Bangladeshi found jobs in Saudi Arabia in August, down sharply from 9749 in the previous month while only 3610 people got employment in Malaysia, down from 18,126 in July.
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Remittances fall by 10.69pc in August
September 12, 2008
The flow of inward remittances fell by 10.69 per cent in August over the previous month, as fallout of labour unrest in two Middle eastern countries compelled a good number of Bangladeshi workers to return home.
The remittances from Bangladeshi nationals working abroad were estimated at $732.98 million in August this year while in July the remittances were worth $820.71 million, according to the central bank statistics, released Wednesday.
Meanwhile, overseas jobs for Bangladeshis fell by 38 per cent in August compared to the previous month due to a decline in demand in the Middle Eastern countries and Malaysia, officials said.
“We expect that the flow of inward remittances would increase in this month ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr festival,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told the FE.
Some private commercial banks (PCBs) are likely to face problem in making import payment bills following a fall in the country’s overall inflow of remittances.
“We may face difficulties to manage fund internally in the near future due to fall in the inward remittances. The government should take immediate steps to resolve the problems with the Middle East countries,” a senior treasury official of a PCB told the FE.
He also said the PCB received $14 million as remittances in August against $20 million in July 2008.
Saudi Arabia topped the list of major sources of remittances with a total of $2.324 billion sent from the country in the fiscal 2007-2008 while a total of $863.73 million was remitted from Kuwait, the BB’s data showed.
A total of $4.975 billion was remitted from eight Middle East countries in fiscal 2007-08 while $2.939 billion came from other countries of the world, according to the statistics.
However, remittances by the Bangladeshi expatriates stood at $1.553 billion in the first two months of the current fiscal, marking a 49.67 per cent growth over the corresponding period of the last fiscal, they added.
Bangladesh received $1.553 billion during the July-August period of the current fiscal against $1.038 billion million in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, the BB’s data showed.
The country’s foreign exchange reserve stood at $5.30 billion Wednesday after making a routine payment to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) Tuesday.
Bangladesh made a routine payment of $582 million to the ACU against imports for July-August period of the current year on the day.
The payment pushed down the foreign exchange reserve to $5.32 billion Tuesday from $5.96 billion on the previous day, the BB officials confirmed.
A total of 54,708 Bangladeshis secured jobs abroad in August, the lowest monthly figure since January, which is also 27.86 per cent down from the same period last year, according to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) statistics.
More than 5.6 million Bangladeshis are now working in over 100 countries across the globe. In the 2007-8 fiscal they sent home $7.939 billion in remittances, up by nearly two billion dollars than the previous fiscal.
Iftekhar assured of Kuwait’s bid to resolve workers’ problems
September 12, 2008
Foreign Affairs Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury Friday said the Kuwaiti authorities have assured him of every effort to resolve the problems faced by the Bangladeshi workers in Kuwait, reports UNB.
Iftekhar, also in charge of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, returned home early Friday after a two-day visit to Kuwait.
The Foreign Adviser mentioned that the Kuwaiti authorities announced an amnesty until October 15 for illegal workers to depart Kuwait without any legal impediments.
“To facilitate the Mission’s work in this regard, and also in response to public demand, we have decided to increase manpower at the (Bangladesh) Embassy,” he said.
“We’ve also engaged a Kuwaiti lawyer to protect our workers’ interests. I had a meeting with him as well,” Dr. Iftekhar Chowdhury said.
During the visit, the Adviser held discussions with Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mohamed Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Labour Minister Bader Fahed Ali Al-Duwailah and other senior officials.
He also held two rounds of discussion with the members of the Bangladeshi community.
Talking to the media in the city Friday, the Foreign Adviser said the Kuwait authorities have assured him that a minimum wage of KD 40 is being fixed for the workers and their living conditions would be improved.
“The question of compensation to the deported labourers would be speedily addressed,” he said, adding: “Kuwait will also take stern action against the Kuwaiti companies who have exploited the Bangladeshis.”
Iftekhar informed that the Kuwaiti Parliament would meet in an emergency session on September 10 to discuss the crisis with regard to foreign workers, including Asians and Bangladeshis. “In that respect the visit was well-timed,” he said.
He said the Kuwaiti authorities see Bangladesh as “a great friend who stood by them at the hour of their greatest need during the Iraqi occupation.
“I also appreciated their support to our economic development. I urged them to take skilled manpower from Bangladesh in the future.
They also agreed to consider supporting some new projects in Bangladesh covering the Padma Bridge, Chittagong Port, and the Special Economic Zone in Sylhet.”
Seoul to recruit 7000 Bangladeshis by 2009
September 12, 2008
South Korea will recruit over 7000 skilled and semi skilled workers from Bangladesh in the next 16 months, the country’s ambassador told the FE on Monday.
Suk-Bum Park said around 3000 Bangladeshi would get jobs in the East Asian economic giant this year while the rest in 2009.
“We have growing employment opportunities in the country’s construction, textile, fisheries, agriculture, electronics and machinery sectors,” Mr. Park said.
“We’ll recruit around 3000 workers under the first ‘Employment Permit System (EPS)’ system this year. In 2009, the number of recruitment will be around 4000,” he said.
Asia’s fourth largest economy has already recruited more than a thousand Bangladeshi under the newly launched ‘Employment Permit System (EPS)’ system, with salary starting from Tk85,000 a month.
Officials said under the EPS, South Korea will recruit 50,000 skilled manpower from 14 countries, including Bangladesh, to make up for its growing shortages of labour force in the country.
“We need huge number of overseas workers as the population growth in South Korea has become stagnant. There are jobs available in almost every sector,” Mr. Park said.
The ambassador said his government has launched the EPS to help the local companies recruit skilled manpower in a transparent process and also to protect the rights of the overseas workers.
Under the EPS, an overseas worker has to enlist his name online, pass Korean language proficiency test and prove his skill for the desired job.
Human Resources Development office of the Korean labour ministry conduct the selection process. Once selected a Bangladesh worker will have to bear only air travel cost, which is around US$850 dollar.
The EPS was launched after Seoul and Dhaka signed an agreement, paving the way for recruitment of skilled Bangladeshi workers by South Korean private companies.
The agreement protects the interest and rights of Bangladeshi workforce in South Korea, where around 18,000 Bangladeshis are now employed and the new deal will facilitate employment of another 10,000 workers within 2010.
100,000 Bangladeshis to get jobs in Malaysia in three months
September 12, 2008
Over 100,000 Bangladeshis are expected to leave Dhaka with jobs for Malaysia by next three months, foreign adviser said Friday.
“We have come to know that a further 100,000 Bangladeshis will be able to leave Dhaka with jobs for Malaysia this year,” foreign adviser Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury told the FE.
Dr. Chowdhury is also in-charge of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment.
He said the South East Asian country, which is one of the premier destinations for Bangladeshi overseas job seekers, has already emerged as a key source of inward remittances for the country.
The foreign adviser said inflow of inward remittances from Bangladeshis in Malaysia has set a record in the last fiscal as manpower export to the country increased in the recent years.
In 2007-08, Dhaka received a record $92.44 million worth of remittances from over half a million Bangladeshis living and working in Malaysia. The amount was $11.8 million in 2006-07.
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