Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia signed a deal yesterday under which the Middle Eastern country will resume importing manpower from Bangladesh gradually.
The process will start with the recruitment of household helps.
At the end the deal signing at the Probashi Kallyan Bhaban in the city yesterday afternoon, Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Secretary Khandaker Iftekher Hyder said: “The minimum wage for a Bangladeshi domestic help in Saudi Arabia will be SR800 [Tk16,000].”
On Monday, Expatriates Welfare Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain said the minimum wage would be between SR1,200 and SR1,500.
The secretary yesterday told reporters: “In addition to the wage, the employers will provide Bangladeshi housemaids food, accommodation, festival bonuses and medical allowances. So, in effect, their wages will be more than SR1,200...The Bangladeshi workers will not have to spend any money for staying in KSA.”
Replying a query, Iftekher said: “As per ILO [International Labour Organisation] convention, the workers will work eight hours per day and will be entitled to overtime allowances.”
Sources said several countries including Sri Lanka, Indonesia and the Philippines have refused to export housemaids to the KSA at SR800 minimum monthly wage.
The deal follows a two-day visit to Bangladesh by an influential Saudi delegation.
Secretary Iftekher Hyder and KSA Labour Ministry’s Deputy Minister for International Affairs Dr Ahmed Al Fahaid signed the deal on behalf of their respective sides.
“We issued around 1.3 million new visas last year for recruiting foreign workers. So, there is a huge employment opportunity for Bangladeshis,” the Saudi minister said after a meeting with a Bangladesh delegation yesterday.
He said: “We have ensured security for the workers. If the worker has qualities, then their wages may rise.”
Meanwhile, Expatriates Welfare Minister Mosharraf yesterday told parliament that Bangladeshi workers can go to Saudi Arabia spending just Tk15,000-Tk20,000 within a short time.
Discussion with Baira
Earlier yesterday, Saudi National Recruitment Committee, the sole manpower exporter in KSA, met a delegation of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira) at a city hotel. They negotiated wages and facilities for the workers and also inked an agreement.
Confirming the matter to the Dhaka Tribune, Baira President Mohammed Abul Basher said: “According to the agreement, KSA employers will bear the costs of visa, medical tests and air tickets...They will gradually import 200,000 domestic aides and chauffeurs from Bangladesh.”
At present, most of the country’s remittance comes from Saudi Arabia, home to more than 1.5 million Bangladeshis.
In 2013-2014, Bangladeshi workers remitted $3.12bn. Bangladesh can earn another $1.5bn a year if it can send another 1 million.
On February 1, following a six-year ban centring anomalies in recruitment processing, the Saudi government announced that it would hire workers from Bangladesh again.