Bangladeshis are the sixth-largest group of migrants in the world with an estimated 13 million Bangladeshis living abroad in as many as 162 countries. The reasons for migration vary but most typically fall under three reasons: For jobs, education, or an improved standard of living.
Saudi Arabia has the highest number of Bangladeshi migrants followed by Malaysia and UAE. These immigrants are mostly unskilled or semi-skilled and are involved in labour intensive sectors. Among industrial nations, IOM data suggests that the United Kingdom has the highest immigrants followed by the USA and Italy.
Even as they live abroad, this massive Bangladeshi diaspora stay connected to their homeland and are concerned for its development. They continue to play a key role in the country’s development in many ways -- the most significant being remittance. The World Bank estimates that the Bangladeshi population abroad sent home over $18 billion in 2019, with 73% coming from those working in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. According to IOM, this accounts for over 6% of GDP, representing the country’s second largest source of foreign income.
Non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) also have other modes of adding to the development of Bangladesh. Mainly by investing in business or developing entrepreneurship, and by utilizing the expertise of the specialists. While there is already much remittance and investment coming in, there has been very little initiative in utilizing NRB experts abroad.
It is evident that many NRBs have high levels of education, special skills, and technical expertise. Many of them hold influential positions in governments and political arena including parliaments. A lot of Bangladeshis are also renowned scientists, academicians, and researchers who are already established in their respective fields. The way India, Japan, and the Philippines made use of their diaspora network can be a good reference point for Bangladesh.
Now in the fourth industrial revolution, the broad area of science and technology, especially the ICT sector is a high potential entry point for investment and intellectual contribution in Bangladesh. Few companies in Bangladesh are working with artificial intelligence-based technology, data analytics, and business intelligence. NRB experts who are working for the world's renowned tech companies can invest in this sector. They can play a crucial role in developing the human capital of Bangladesh through knowledge spillover and technology transfer. Since Bangladesh is going through the golden period of demographic dividend, these efforts can be crucial in developing a more skilled workforce.
Gaining trust and confidence of the NRBs will be difficult at the initial stage
Additionally, NRB expertise can be utilized in the following sectors: Food security and agriculture; health; pharmaceuticals and vaccine development; power and energy; maritime resources management; mega industry and infrastructure development; climate change and environmental management; public transportation and traffic management; international trade and commerce; aviation and aerospace industries; export and import; economics and financial management; games and sports; and others.
In order to integrate the NRB experts, multi-level action is required:
- Policy level: An overarching policy for NRBs should be put in place which ultimately guides the whole actions in this regard.
- Institutional level: A central coordinating body should be established at the prime minister’s office, possibly headed by the principal secretary or at least secretary of the prime minister’s office (PMO).
- Organizational level: Ministry of Expatriate Welfare and Employment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, PMO, and every foreign mission office should establish a dedicated cell for dealing with this issue.
- Operational Level: At the operational level a database needs to be developed in order to have a list of available resources of expert NRBs across the globe. The central database can be maintained and managed by the PMO but the data entry points should be decentralized to foreign missions abroad. The database can be segregated into various categories for an easy system of finding relevant lists.
The Bangladesh High Commissions can take necessary actions to advertise the initiative among the NRBs of the respective countries. They may need to arrange meetings and symposiums to familiarize the initiative of the government. The Bangladesh missions abroad can later cross check the information of the registered individuals. Missions can also arrange some special events such as fairs for NRB registration. The resources can be utilized in several ways. The modality can be as follows:
- Formal linkage with relevant NRBs and national level institutions: The available NRB neuro-surgeons can be formally linked to all national level tertiary neuro hospitals through the National Institute of Neuroscience. Their expertise can be utilized in clinical issues as well as research related issues. Both paid and voluntary options for utilizing experts can be opened for this purpose.
- Engaging the resources on case to case basis in specific projects: Public or private sector organizations can engage experts for specific projects as consultants
- Accommodating at the national level: If anyone wants to come back to Bangladesh, the government can try to accommodate them with a suitable position based on the quality and need on a case to case basis.
Annual conferences for NRBs can also be arranged in Bangladesh during vacation periods abroad. A sectoral award or recognition prize can be introduced for the outstanding contributors on an annual basis.
This initiative is challenging. Gaining trust and confidence of the NRBs will be difficult at the initial stage. In order to make the initiative attractive and lucrative, political commitment and enthusiasm must persist. There needs to be a sense of belief that the government values their contribution with a transparent and accountable mechanism in place to make the proposed initiative an effective one.
Dr Mohammad Kamrul Hasan is a Researcher and Public Administration Practitioner. Email: [email protected].
