Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Nurul Islam on Monday said 55,149 female workers went abroad in 2018, while 369 have returned to Bangladesh after facing various problems overseas.
The minister made the comment in response to a question tabled by Jatiya Party MP Selim Uddin in parliament.
Minister Nurul Islam also said that Bangladeshi workers are working in 165 countries across the globe.
He mentioned that 1,008,525 workers went to various countries in 2017, while 47,027 more have gone abroad to earn wages as of May this year.
The minister further said 3,094,848 people had been employed in various countries since January 1, 2014.
Responding to a question from ruling party MP Nizam Uddin Hazari, Nurul Islam said 5,035 Bangladeshi workers were in jails in various countries.
Of the total number of people working overseas, 976 are in Saudi Arabia, 851 in the UAE, 810 in Malaysia, 478 in Oman, 85 in Jordan, 29 in Libya, five in Thailand, six in Mauritius, 87 in Singapore, 27 in Japan, 137 in Italy, 91 in Hong Kong, 23 in South Korea, 97 in Iraq, 384 in Kuwait, 146 in Greece, 438 in Bahrain, 10 in Brunei, 113 in the Maldives, four in Egypt, and 238 in Qatar.
