Central Asian emerging economic power Uzbekistan is becoming a new favourable spot for exporting Bangladeshi manpower as a batch of 239 Bangladeshi workers flew to the country for the first time on Saturday.
The workers reached the country by a special aircraft of Uzbekistan Airways at 10:30am from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA).
Group Captain AHM Touhid-ul Ahsan, Director of the airport confirmed it.
Md Zahangir Alam, Bangladesh’s Ambassador to Uzbekistan said that about 888 workers would go to the country by three special flights. The newly appointed Bangladeshi manpower will work for an engineering company in Karshi, about 450 km from the country’s capital city of Tashkent.
Overseas labour market experts explained the matter as a very positive news.
“It is really very good for Bangladeshi workers as well as recruiting agencies. When job opportunities in our traditional labour markets in Middle East and Malaysia are declining for different reasons, Uzbekistan opens its door as a new destination for us,” said Benjir Ahmed, MP, President of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA).
He said there is wide opportunity for skilled workers. We are collecting data from Uzbekistan that which categories of workers they need.
The BAIRA President, however, said the Bangladeshi workers have a trend to go to traditional markets only. But those markets are sinking gradually. In these situations they have to change their mindset and should look countries like Uzbekistan.
“The workers’ landing in Uzbekistan would give message of revival when situation in the M.E is downward. Then others would be eager to go there,” Benjir Ahmed said.
“When our traditional labour markets in the Middle East, in despair, then discovery of the new destination is an important event. Now we have to wait to see the result of the exporting manpower to the country,” Shariful Islam Hasan, Head of BRAC’s Migration Programme, said The New Nation on Saturday.
The experts said, the environment and other factors in the Central Asian country are well. The results of the first batch of Bangladeshi workers should say the final talk.
“If the Bangladeshi workers feel happy in Uzbekistan and get good treatment from the management there with regular wages, then more workers should be sent there,” Shariful Hasan said.
Md. Shahidul Alam, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment told The New Nation, “Uzbekistan is a nice country. Bangladeshi manpower will be happy to work there.”
He expressed hope that the door of different consumer products would be opened besides manpower exporting there.
Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmad said the government is taking initiatives to send workers to some new destinations like Uzbekistan, Kazakhistan, Turkmenistan, Cambodia, Poland, China, Romania, Croatia and the Seychelles.
