The government move to formulate a policy on better management of overseas employment and the protection of migrant workers’ rights has been held up by red tape.
As the migrant workers contribute to the country’s economy by sending a large amount of foreign currencies home, the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry, which oversees migrant labourers, initiated the move to shape the policy to protect the workers’ rights and rehabilitate the returnee migrants.
Although the draft policy was prepared in mid 2013, it is yet to be approved by the cabinet.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has provided technical support in preparing the draft.
Seeking anonymity, officials at the Expat Ministry said the draft of the Overseas Employment Ministry-2013 has been finalised, but has not yet been sent to the cabinet for approval as the opinions of all the ministries are yet to be received.
“We planned to send the draft to the cabinet by February 2014, but of 12 ministries, the Social Welfare Ministry and the Health and Family Welfare Ministry have yet to give their opinions,” a senior official at the Expatriates’ Welfare Ministry told the Dhaka Tribune on Thursday, preferring not to be named.
The official also said: “We have been reminding the ministries about their write-up since October 2013, and now we are tired.”
“If I don’t get their opinions soon, I will take the draft to the cabinet and get it approved,” Expatriates’ Welfare Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain told the Dhaka Tribune over the phone yesterday.
The minister also said a form of discipline would prevail in the migration sector if the policy was approved and implemented properly.
About 80,000 Bangladeshis are working in various countries and sending back over US$10bn in remittances annually.
Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) statistics say US$14.17 billion in remittances were received in 2013 and US$13.83 in 2014.
The draft policy would facilitate the reduction of migration costs alongside ensuring the rights of female migrants.
Under the proposed policy, migrants in the destination countries and their families at home will be protected.
In order to bring dynamism and transparency to the migration sector, a national steering committee will be formed, and headed by the prime minister and co-chaired by the expat minister.
The ministers and secretaries from different government departments will be included in the committee, which will sit at least once a year.
Secretarial assistance will be provided by the Expatriates’ Welfare Ministry.
The committee will provide guidelines so that all stakeholders- including ministries, recruitment agencies, and civil society organizations- have a unified approach to ensuring effective and transparent labour migration.
The committee will advise and instruct stakeholders on policy making and reformation, and work to integrate and rehabilitate returnee migrants.
A national migration forum will also be formed involving 60 representatives from ministries, labour migration bodies, federations of employers, trade unions, research organisations and recruitment agents, each to be appointed on a three-year basis.
It will set priorities for the implementation of the policy and review the plans related to it.
The policy also proposes forming a market research unit to conduct a study on the demand and supply of workers.
It will also study the existing labour markets and explore potential new destination countries.
For the sending of skilled manpower abroad, training will be given in the trades which are of high demand in the world markets, according to the policy.
It is also proposed that a vast database of workers be created so that aspiring migrant labourers could be sent abroad in a systematic manner and with low migration costs.