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29 March 2024


Business Insider Bangladesh

BMET that controls $25bn-labour market has weak infrastructure: Migration specialist

Md Owasim Uddin Bhuyan || BusinessInsider

Published: 20:48, 8 July 2021  
BMET that controls $25bn-labour market has weak infrastructure: Migration specialist

Pervez Siddiqui

Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), which regulates the labour market of over 10 million Bangladeshi migrant workers remitting US$25 billion annually, stands on the feeble infrastructure, according to a migration specialist.

Pervez Siddiqui, Executive Director at Films 4 Peace Foundation, said that there is no alternative to strengthening the BMET to make the labour market of Bangladesh more migrant friendly.

In an interview with Business Insider Bangladesh, he said that the government should allocate huge budget to the expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment ministry to deal with the issues of labour migration.

The BMET is the main wing of the ministry.

Siddiqui, also a peace research scholar at the University of Oslo, Norway, has been conducting and moderating presentation of ‘Ovibashi’ (Migrant) programme in Bangladesh Television for many years, said that special steps on the model of public-private partnership could be taken to strengthen the BMET and other wings, which provide services to migrants.

BI: What migration issues should be highlighted by the media during the Covid-19 pandemic?

Siddiqui: I think during the pandemic, media should focus on protection measures being ensured for our expatriate brothers and sisters scattered in different countries. How are those migrant workers leading lives who lost jobs or businesses affected by the pandemic? How are those migrant workers passing lives coming back home on leave? The media should take up the issues including migrants’ problems in lockdown, facing issues in taking services from Bangladesh embassies abroad. Media can play vital role in rehabilitations of the migrant workers.

Secondly, the media can suggest the policymakers to retain existing labour markets amid Covid and ensure services for the country’s migrant workers. On the other hand, human trafficking is one of the big challenges for our country as especially our migrants are being rescued in the Mediterranean every day.There is no doubt that an active group of Bangladesh is linked to the global human traffickers. The media should highlight the issues of human trafficking.

It is very important to ensure that migrant workers are getting Covid vaccines on priority basis. The government has already started harassing the migrant workers in the name of vaccines. Migrant workers could get vaccines with their passport numbers but now they were being forced to go through a complex process.

Steps should be taken to make a comprehensive database of Bangladeshi migrants, professionals, businessmen in abroad and diaspora incorporating with their specific and updated information.

BI: Which opportunities can Bangladesh grab in the post-pandemic period?

Siddiqui: In the post pandemic time, many job opportunities will be created abroad. New labour market will be created and business opportunities will be opened. As global business remained stagnant, our young generation including educated ones should be groomed as skilled manpower. Tourism sector might be flourished after the pandemic. So skilled manpower would have to be groomed for this sector. Every year large amount of remittance are being sent by the country’s migrant workers and a good portion of the remittance would have to be used for them.

As Bangladesh received US$ 25 billion in remittance in this current fiscal year. If $5 billion dollar of the figure is spent or invested to enhance skill and create employments for migrant workers, a big change will be seen in the country. Those Bangladeshis keen to go abroad for studies should be given loans. This will create jobs and reduce unemployment. If the educated but unemployed people can be groomed as skilled workers, illegal migration and human trafficking to Europe through Mediterranean will remarkably decline.

BI: How can Bangladesh move forward to protect its migrants abroad?

Siddiqui: Though the expatriates are sending remittances worth US$ 25 billion but safe migration for them could not be ensured till now. It is very hard to protect over one crore expatriates with such a small budget and shortage of staffs. Those engaged with migration management must be free from corruption. The BMET and welfare wings must be strengthened through the effective measures. In the protection mechanism, all including private organizations, NGOs, and expatriates workers must be engaged. The expatriates in the labour intensive countries could be engaged to render services to other fellows. A large part of the country’s migrant workers are victims of frauds. They must be protected through partnership.

BI: How can manpower recruitment be improved for benefiting migrants?

Siddiqui: Huge investment is a must to groom skilled manpower and improve the manpower recruitment. Fair recruitment should be ensured and the promotion could be given to the fair recruitment agencies. Rating system should be introduced for the recruiting agencies for their performance. The manpower recruitment offices should be extended to the upazila level to keep the process free from middlemen.

BI: Can you please put your observations or suggestions to control human trafficking?

Siddiqui: t is very important to focus on community to resist the human trafficking. Why are our children being trafficked? The root cause of it should be identified. As young people are being trafficked by luring them into the jobs, they should get jobs to remove their frustration. By this way human trafficking could be controlled large extent. Secondly reliable flow of information should be ensured in the community about jobs abroad. A strong community can help resist human trafficking, Above all government’s zero tolerance policy should be put in place. It is reported that a member of parliament has been detained in Kuwait for human trafficking cases. So important people in the society are involved in human trafficking and the government should take steps considering the issues. The human traffickers who have already been arrested should be prosecuted immediately. The judiciary system can be strengthened to help reduce human trafficking.

Nagad
Walton