Bangladeshi overseas workers earn lower because of lack of skills: Speakers

Bangladeshi overseas workers are receiving lower payment on an average of USD $2000 annually due to unskilled and language barriers.

This information was revealed in a keynote presentation on Thursday at a technical dialogue on ‘National Employment Policy and Labour Market Employment Challenges in Bangladesh’ by Dr MA Razzaque, Chairman of RAPID.

The presentation showed that 1.83 million Filipinos overseas workers generated $36.9 billion while 2.1 million Nepalese overseas workers earned $8.2 billion, while more than 10 million Bangladeshi overseas workers earned $22.1 billion in 2022, reports UNB.

Despite impressive progress in social indicators, the skilled manpower generation programme did not progress as per desire, Razzaque pointed out in the paper.

Though industrial growth did not get pace in between 2017 and 2022, the employment decreased by 3.5 lakh due to increase in the use of the AI-supported smart machines in the production line, he highlighted.

Around 45 lakh youths between 15 to 24 years are passing idle time despite having potential for work. Because of lack of technical education and jobs-oriented training they cannot be involved in productive job markets.

According to the LFS 2022 report, the working age population has surpassed 120 million or 71.2 percent of total population, and this situation will continue till 2041. This advantage if utilised in industrial and service sectors, the economy will jump a record level, Razzaque pointed out in the presentation.

State minister for labour and employment Begum Mannujan Sufian was present in the programme as the chief guest while Ehsan-e-eElahi, secretary of the ministry, chaired the programme.

The programme was jointly organised by the Ministry of Labour and Employment and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) at the Hotel International in the capital on Thursday.

Dr Md Kawser Ahmed, Member of General Economic Division (GED), Dr Shahnaz Arefin, secretary, ministry of statistics, Sharifa Khan, secretary of Economic Relations Division (ERD), Dr Sher Verick, acting branch chief, employment, labour market and youth, ILO headquarters, among others, spoke in the function.