Among the positive turnarounds since the uprising in July and August of last year has been the renewed faith that our migrant workers have put in the country, leading to a significant increase in remittances.
Indeed, July and March 19 of this year, Bangladesh received $20.74 billion in remittance, 27% higher than the $16.33bn received during the same period in the previous year. Already in the month of March 2025, we have seen $2.25bn in remittance flow into the country in the first 19 days.
What has been even more encouraging is that, while earlier, a major portion of this remittance used to flow into the country through illegal means, increasingly, our expats are choosing official banking channels to send their money.
All of this has been a much-needed lifeline for our economy at a time when we continue to try and bring stability to the nation, and simultaneously enact numerous reforms across most major sectors.
While there can be nothing but gratitude towards our expat workers, merely expressing this gratitude is not, and has never been, sufficient. Despite their hard work and contributions to our economy, our expats continue to suffer, not just in their host countries, but sadly, also before they leave Bangladesh as well.
There is no better way of honouring their contribution than to eliminate the numerous barriers they face, from unscrupulous middlemen and agencies looking to cheat them, to unfair treatment once in their host nations.
Bangladesh has been, and continues to be, lifted by the contribution of our expats. They continue to be there for the nation and it is about time the nation gives back to them, respecting and honouring their contributions.
