With Riyadh appointing 10 Saudi agencies to recruit manpower from Bangladesh, a new avenue of sending people to Saudi Arabia has been opened.
“The Saudi ambassador [to Bangladesh Abdullah al-Bussairy] came to the foreign ministry today and informed me about the recent development,” Additional Foreign Secretary Mustafa Kamal told the Dhaka Tribune Sunday.
The Saudi authorities are yet to provide the name of the agencies or their working modalities, he said adding that they will recruit people through Bangladesh agencies but it is not clear yet when the process will begin or how many people will they recruit.
“We sought clarification from the embassy: the names of agencies, and their way of operation in our country and other related matters.”
“We have been pursuing the issue for long and now it has taken a shape,” Kamal said. “In diplomacy, result does not come instantly.”
Saudi Arabia stopped recruiting people in mass scale since 2009 due to several factors including “Saudisation” meaning the national policy of the Gulf country to encourage employment of Saudi nationals in the private sector.
Another diplomat said the agencies would recruit workers in public, private sectors as well as domestic helps.
“The number of recruitment will depend on demand-supply basis.”
The Saudi authorities have imposed strict conditions on the agencies and they have to comply with the conditions while recruiting people from Bangladesh, he said.
“The agencies will have to complete all the official formalities and provide training to the workers.”
They will provide guarantee of financial rights until the workers return to Bangladesh, he went on to say, open up bank accounts, arrange insurance coverage and the contract between employers and employees must be approved by the Saudi labour ministry.
“They will also provide accommodation to the workers when they reach Saudi Arabia till the employers receive them and bear all the responsibilities from departure to arrival in Bangladesh,” he said.
The Saudi authorities expect that the Bangladesh government also play its part for smooth recruitment process.
“Forgery in passport and training certificate is a big problem when sending people to any country,” he pointed out.
The home ministry and Bureau of Manpower and Employment and Training (BMET) should strengthen their monitoring system to prevent forgery in the passport and training certificate, he added.
Saudi Arabia, a very influential country in the Gulf region, in April blacklisted 31 hajj agencies, which were engaged in human trafficking in the guise of hajj pilgrims.
