Bangladesh exported a total of 91,734 workers to overseas market during the month of June with the KSA maintaining the top position with 64,500 workers,     according to data of the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET)

The manpower export dropped 13 per cent in the month of June compared to the period of May 2025

Bangladesh exported a total of 105,213 workers to different countries in the month of May as against a total of 49,983 workers abroad in April 2025—recording 110 per cent growth over the previous month, according to data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).

 Bangladesh exported a total of 7339 workers to Qatar, 5712 workers to Singapore, 3644 workers to the Maldives, 1152 to UAE,  2629 workers to Kuwait,  670 workers to  Italy,  112 workers to Japan,  382 workers to Cambodia, 554 workers to Cyprus, 1405 workers to Kyrgyzstan, 107 workers to Brazil,12  workers to the United Kingdom,

Bangladesh’s manpower export to overseas countries bounced back in the month of May as manpower export of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Qatar, the Maldives and United Arab Emirates recorded well during last month, according to data of the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET)

Bangladesh exported a total of 105,213 workers to different countries in the month of May as against a total of 49,983 workers abroad in April 2025—recording 110 per cent growth over the previous month, according to data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).

Bangladesh exported a total of 69,561 workers  to Saudi Arabia as against 28,671  workers recruited in April and a total 80,663 in March.

Bangladesh exported a total of 10917 workers to Qatar, 6590 workers to Singapore, 5410 workers to the Maldives, 1231 to UAE,  2184 workers to Kuwait,  789 workers to  Italy,  138 workers to Japan,  405 workers to Cambodia, 668 workers to Cyprus, 1501 workers to Kyrgyzstan, 210 workers to Brazil, 53 workers to the United Kingdom,

Meanwhile, Bangladesh sent 49,983 workers abroad in April 2025—marking the lowest  monthly figure in 43 months—as recruitment in Saudi Arabia dropped by more than 64% compared to the previous month, according to data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).

The sharp decline in Saudi recruitment is attributed to the mandatory attestation requirement by the Bangladesh Embassy in Riyadh for single visa holders, strictly enforced since late January.

The BMET has also implemented strict measures to issue immigration clearance cards following allegations that many Bangladeshi workers were arriving in Saudi Arabia without work permits or confirmed jobs.

Overseas employment in April saw a 52% decrease compared to March and was 41% lower than in April last year, available data shows.

Meanwhile, Chief Adviser of Bangladesh interim  government Dr Mohammad  Yunus is expected to visit  Malaysia in August at the invitation of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to deepen multilateral relations with the South Asian country.

During the visit to Malaysia, Chief Adviser to the interim government Dr. Muhammad Yunus is likely to discuss with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim    the issue of opening manpower market to Bangladeshi workers and seek his intervention into the matter.

The labour market in Malaysia has been closed since June, 2024 and Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus is also likely to raise the issue with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and reopen the labour  market soon.

Human Resources Minister of Malaysia Steven Sim in Kuala Lumpur said that the  recruitment of foreign workers into Malaysia must be based on actual sectoral needs and demands, not driven by business interests or profit-making motives.

The statement issued by the Human Resources Ministry recently  followed Sim's courtesy meeting with Dr Asif Nazrul, adviser to the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment of Bangladesh, and Lutfey Siddiqi, Bangladesh's Special Envoy for International Affairs.

According to the ministry, Malaysia and Bangladesh agreed to strengthen the technical coordination mechanism for labour management through the Joint Working Group (JWG) Meeting.

In the meeting, the ministry also shared Malaysia’s long-term strategy to reduce dependence on foreign workers.

With major labour markets such as Malaysia, Oman, and Bahrain still closed due to alleged corruption and mismanagement in the recruitment process, sector insiders fear that the shrinking Saudi market could trigger a significant downturn in the overall labour migration sector.

Labour recruiters had long warned about Bangladesh's over dependence on Saudi Arabia, which accounted for around 57% of all overseas job placements in March. These concerns were realised in April with the sharp drop in foreign employment.

Saudi Arabia recruited 28,671 Bangladeshi workers in April, a significant drop from 80,663 in March. Qatar followed with 6,295 workers, and other destinations included Singapore, Kuwait, Jordan, and Kyrgyzstan.

In response to the situation, recruiters have been demanding a simpler process for issuing demand letters for Saudi-bound workers. A large portion of pending visas were cleared in March after protests from recruiting agencies.

In a recent statement, BMET said that the attestation requirement is in line with the Foreign Employment and Migration Act 2013 and the 2017 regulations, designed to ensure safe migration.

Initially, the Bangladesh Embassy in Riyadh allowed faster processing to facilitate migration, considering Saudi Arabia's role as Bangladesh's largest labour market. However, reports of poor working conditions and premature returns led to stricter enforcement.

To improve efficiency, the embassy has launched a digital system for online attestation of demand letters.

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has made significant progress in resuming visa issuance for Bangladeshi nationals following sustained diplomatic engagement.

 UAE Ambassador to Bangladesh Abdulla Ali ALHmoudi met with the Chief Adviser's Special Envoy Lutfey Siddiqi recently in Dhaka.

During the meeting, the ambassador expressed appreciation for Siddiqi's proactive engagement with the UAE government in recent weeks, which included over half a dozen ministerial visits covering visa facilitation and investment cooperation, according to a press release from the Chief Adviser's Office.

Ambassador ALHmoudi informed the special envoy that the UAE Embassy in Dhaka is now issuing 30–50 visit visas daily.

Additionally, bulk visa processing for business delegations has been expedited, boosting both people-to-people and commercial exchanges.

In a major development, the UAE Ministry of Human Resources has reactivated its online system for skilled employment visas. As a result, visas for professionals such as marketing managers and hotel staff have been issued recently. Furthermore, 500 visas for security guards have already been granted, with another 1,000 approved and awaiting issuance.

It is expected that the UAE will gradually ease visa restrictions further in the coming months.

Highlighting the importance of primary education, technical and information communication based (ICT) knowledge, the speakers said country’s manpower export can be increased if steps are taken to develop skills of the disadvantaged communities of the coastal region.

Experts came up with this observation at a view exchange meeting held at the North Kheona Government Primary School grounds at Koyra upazila, adjacent to Sundarbans in Khulna recently.

Koyra, a coastal saline prone upazila of Khulna, surrounded by the Sundarbans, is focusing on the development of disadvantaged and backward communities.

The meeting on Human Resource Development and Safe Migration was organized by the Bureau of Manpower, Employment, and Training (BMET) under the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment. Koyra UNO Ruli Biswas presided over the meeting.

Speaking as the chief guest, BMET’s Additional Director General Md. Ashraf Hossain said that although Khulna is the third-largest city in Bangladesh, it lags behind significantly in manpower export.

He mentioned that Khulna has four technical training centers where individuals can receive training to enhance their skills and secure jobs abroad.

He said that many unskilled Bangladeshi workers face exploitation and harassment abroad due to a lack of specific job skills. As a result, they are often forced to accept lower wages, lower-ranking jobs, or even job termination, he added.

If proper steps are not taken for human resource development, the country’s progress will face a setback, he said, adding that youths must be trained through various institutions with modern and specialized skill development programmes.

KM Najma Parvin, head teacher of Maharajpur Government Primary School, emphasized the importance of primary schools in developing skilled individuals.

Maulana Md. Abdul Hannan, Acting Principal of Gozalia Alim Madrasa, highlighted the necessity of learning different languages to develop an ICT based skilled workforce for overseas jobs to increase remittances.

He said madrasas offer Arabic and Urdu language education alongside Bangla and English.

Md. Shahinuzzaman, Director of the Employees Welfare Board, Khulna, Special Metropolitan Magistrate (Dhaka) Sheikh Mohammad Belal, Koyra Press Club President Sadar Uddin Ahmed and Koyra Upazila Jamaat-e-Islami Amir Maulana Mizanur Rahman, among others, spoke on the event.