Dhaka: Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury informed Parliament today that over 1.5 crore expatriate Bangladeshis are currently residing in 176 countries across the globe. "Currently, more than 15 million Bangladeshis are working in 176 countries around the world," he mentioned in response to a question from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Md Amir Hamza (Kushtia-3).
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the minister emphasized the commitment of the current government to uphold the dignity, rights, and welfare of these expatriates. He criticized the previous fascist government for neglecting the welfare of expatriates and outlined the various measures implemented by the present government to address their needs.
Ariful Haque Choudhury highlighted the initiatives taken by the government, including the Wage Earners Welfare Board's annual fund allocations through 30 labor welfare wings of Bangladeshi missions in 27 countries. These funds provide administrative, legal, and welfare services to expatriates. Legal services, such as assistance in recovering death compensation for Bangladeshis who die abroad, are also being offered. To support these services, 11 mission labor welfare law firms and panel lawyers have been appointed.
The government has introduced several other measures, such as arranging travel clearances for workers facing passport issues, providing legal support to detained workers, resolving workplace disputes, and addressing housing-related problems. For female workers in danger, the government ensures their rescue and repatriation, and safe homes have been established under embassies and high commissions. Hospitals are regularly visited to ensure proper treatment for sick and injured workers, and financial assistance is provided for repatriating the bodies of deceased workers when employers fail to cover costs. A 24/7 expatriate call center is also available for support.
In response to another question from lawmaker Shafiqur Rahman Kiron (Shariatpur-2), the minister explained that the government's election manifesto includes various plans for the welfare and employment of expatriates. A 180-day action plan has been formulated to implement these plans. He noted that the migration of manpower abroad cannot be solely managed by the government, necessitating private sector involvement through licensed recruiting agencies and mandatory clearance from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).
Ariful Haque Choudhury elaborated on the government's efforts to expand the labor market and increase manpower exports to developed countries in Asia, including Dubai. Diplomatic discussions are ongoing with countries with closed or restricted labor markets for Bangladeshi workers, such as Malaysia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain. Bangladesh is also sending workers to major labor markets, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Romania, Seychelles, Portugal, and Russia. Memorandums of Understanding and agreements have been signed with 18 countries to facilitate the sending of workers.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Manpower Development Organization, Japan (IM Japan), workers are being sent to Japan as technical interns without immigration costs. Additionally, an agreement with Japan emphasizes Japanese language education with the aim of sending 100,000 workers over the next five years. A "Japan Cell" has been established within the ministry to support this initiative.
The government has also launched a project titled "Providing Driving Training for Employment in the Country and Abroad" to train 100,000 drivers. The initiative is progressing successfully, with 1,132,519 workers employed abroad in 2025, including 62,352 female workers.