Malaysia to soon inform decision on opening labour market to all Bangladeshi agencies: Asif Nazrul

Malaysia will soon inform the interim government whether or not its labour market will be opened to all Bangladeshi recruiting agencies, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Asif Nazrul said today (15 May).

"We had requested that the Malaysian labour market be opened up to all recruiting agencies in Bangladesh so that everyone can take the opportunity to send people," the adviser, who is currently visiting Malaysia, said in a Facebook live broadcast after meeting with Malaysia's Human Resources Minister and Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismai. 

"We have explained this very well. They will consider it carefully. They will inform us of their decision soon," Asif said. 

Regarding future employment, he said, "We have learned from various sources that Malaysia may take in 1,00,000 to 1,50,000 foreign workers in the next few months. We have been assured by the Malaysian human resources minister that Bangladesh will be given top priority in taking in people. The largest number of people will be taken from Bangladesh."

In 2021, Malaysia allowed only 100 Bangladeshi recruitment agencies to send workers, even though the country has over 2,500 registered agencies.

This limited group of agencies, widely known as the  "recruiting agency syndicate," has been linked to significant corruption, with some charging up to Tk6 lakh to send a worker abroad. 

Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bangladesh, the host country was given the authority to select the agencies.

Regarding the 17,000 workers who were unable to travel due to a lack of flight tickets last year, Adviser Asif said, "Some progress has been made. The list of 7,926 people as the first batch is finalised. Opportunities will be given in a short time."

Highlighting another major development, he said, "Bangladeshi workers do not get multiple visas. I have requested their home minister so that Bangladeshis also get multiple visas like workers from other countries. He did not make any promises. However, he has asked their officials to take immediate action in this regard."

"I have also talked about recruiting a skilled workforce, including security guards, caregivers, and nurses. They have shown interest. And I have talked about legalising illegal workers," he added.

Meanwhile, the Bangladesh embassy in Kuala Lumpur said in a statement today regarding the meeting with Malaysian ministers, "Malaysian side referred to the ongoing policy reforms in its labour sector, including its multitier levy system and quota for foreign workers in its key sectors."

Both sides recognised the need for addressing the challenges in the recruitment system, with a view to ensuring a fair, ethical, and transparent migration process and reducing the migration cost. 

"The Malaysian Government informed that they have decided to introduce a common system for recruitment of migrant workers which they will apply to all source countries," reads a press release. 

The Malaysian govt assured to ensure access of all qualified and compliant recruiting agencies. They also proposed to introduce a performance review mechanism and arrange more frequent meetings between the two countries at the technical level to address complaints in the recruitment process, which Bangladesh welcomed.