For the past two years, Altaf from Manikganj has been trying to go abroad in hopes of changing his fortune.
First, he prepared all the necessary documents to go to Oman, only to find out that the Omani government had stopped issuing all types of visas. He then turned his attention to Malaysia, but that market also shut down.
Altaf’s dream of working abroad remains unfulfilled.
According to data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), several major labour markets have been closed over the past 12 years. These include Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Malaysia, Egypt, Romania, Brunei and the Maldives.
Additionally, the work permit verification process in Italy has slowed down significantly. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has also ceased visa issuance, halting worker migration. Besides, despite an agreement with Libya, formal worker migration has yet to commence. Mauritius, meanwhile, is issuing only a limited number of visas to Bangladeshi workers.
Iraq's labour market closed in 2011
Following a high demand for manpower exports, a Bangladeshi ambassador and labour counsellor were appointed to Iraq in October 2009.
Worker migration began formally later that year, and over 2,000 Bangladeshis migrated to Iraq by 2010.
However, this labour market was shut down in 2011.
Worker migration resumed briefly in 2013 but was again halted in late 2018 when the Iraqi government imposed a ban on recruiting Bangladeshi workers.
Bahrain closed its doors in 2018
In August 2018, a Bangladeshi national in Bahrain murdered an imam, following which Bahrain shut its labour market to Bangladeshi workers and also deported a significant number of Bangladeshis.
Once a major labour destination for Bangladesh, Bahrain had received nearly 300,000 workers over 13 years.
Uncertainty in UAE
Though not officially closed, the UAE has stopped issuing visas to Bangladeshi workers.
BMET data reveals that only 676 workers migrated to the UAE in September, mostly those delayed from earlier months.
Recruitment agents claim the UAE has effectively stopped recruiting Bangladeshi workers without issuing a formal ban.
Malaysian market closed multiple times
Allegations of corruption led Malaysia to close its labour market for Bangladeshis in 2018.
It reopened in December 2021 through a new agreement and migration resumed in August next year.
Between August 2022 and May 2024, 494,180 workers migrated to Malaysia, before the market was shut again in May due to syndicates' corruption, leaving 16,990 workers stranded despite receiving BMET clearance.
Currently, Malaysia only accepts workers in the plantation sector, albeit in limited numbers.
Reopened, then closed again in Maldives
The Maldives reopened its labour market for Bangladeshi workers in February, only to shut it down three months later, leaving many workers who had paid agents to facilitate their migration in limbo.
On May 22, the Bangladesh high commission in the Maldives announced that the Maldivian government had stopped issuing visas to Bangladeshi workers but said it was negotiating for an increase in quotas.
Visa issues in Italy
On October 17, Italy suspended its labour market for Bangladeshi workers. The Italian embassy in Dhaka cited an influx of forged documents and work permits as the reason for suspending all approvals from certain countries, including Bangladesh.
Parvez, a work permit applicant from Bangladesh, shared his frustration saying he had managed to submit his documents after three months of trying, but seven months had passed, and he still had no idea when or whether he would get his visa.
Overdependence on Saudi Arabia
With other promising labour markets closed, Bangladeshi workers are spending extra money to migrate to Saudi Arabia.
In October, the BMET issued clearance for 104,858 workers, of whom 83,584 were bound for Saudi Arabia.
Research stagnant
The BMET conducted a study in 2018 on the potential of labour markets in 53 countries, and no further research has been undertaken since then.
Although Bangladesh has expanded its manpower exports from 97 to 168 countries over the past decade and a half, most of these markets receive only a handful of workers.
According to stakeholders, the inability to secure new markets could put Bangladesh’s migration industry at significant risk.
Mohammed Fakhrul Islam, joint secretary general of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), said the relevant ministry's research cell on labour markets was ineffective and not doing any work.
Reopening and exploring new markets
A senior official from the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment told this correspondent that work was underway to reopen closed markets.
Negotiations with Jordan and Mauritius were nearing completion, the official said, adding that workers were expected to start going to Brunei soon.
The ministry was also exploring new labour markets, with some workers already migrating under new agreements, the official said.
The official went on to say that the ministry's sub-division had provided reports on resolving issues in the labour market, and the adviser was working to reopen these markets having already discussed the matter with the chief adviser.
Meanwhile, Dr Mohammad Jalal Uddin Sikder, coordinator of the Center for Migration Studies at North South University, said syndicates controlling labour markets led to the exploitation of migrants.
He added that issues such as submitting fake documents, irregularities in recruitment and excessive migration costs had caused several countries to suspend hiring workers from Bangladesh. Moreover, in some countries where the market was still open, manpower exports were also declining, Jalal said.
Jalal, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and Sociology, said research on Bangladesh’s labour market in both public and private sectors, domestically and internationally, was minimal compared to what was needed.
As a result, there was no clear understanding of the demand for skilled Bangladeshi workers in various sectors in Europe or whether this demand might change in the future, he added.