The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Bangladesh received record US$7.1 billion remittances from expatriate workers in the first 11 months (July-May) of this fiscal year, marking a 31 per cent growth over the corresponding period of the last fiscal.

The figure was US$5.4 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal year, according to central bank statistics.

The remittance flow, however, marked a declining trend in recent months. In May, Bangladeshi nationals working abroad sent back an estimated US $732 million, a drop of US$49 million from April's US $781 million. The remittances in April showed 47.2 per cent growth from a year ago but down from a record high of US$808.72 million in March. The remittance in April fell by US$8.52 million from the previous month, accounts released by the central bank says.

Officials of the central bank expect the inflow of remittance to touch an annual $10 billion over the next one year, boosting a key source of foreign exchange for the country. Remittances from expatriate Bangladeshis are the country's second biggest source of foreign income after ready-made garments, which earned more than US$9 billion in 2006-07 fiscal year.

An official of Bangladesh Bank said the inflow of remittance shot up during the period due to huge growth in manpower export and proper implementation of the Anti-money Laundering Act, which has prompted Bangladeshis to use banking and other legal channels to send money back home.

The central bank has already enacted a series of anti-money laundering laws and simplified money exchange rules to encourage expatriate Bangladeshis to avoid the illegal hundi channels.

Bangladeshi expatriates are now increasingly using banking channels to remit money as they know more about the danger of money laundering while banks have become efficient in delivering such money, he added.

The BB has allowed the commercial banks to partner with the non-governmental organizations (NGO) having branches all over the country for disbursement of remittances, particularly in the rural areas.

The majority of the expatriates work in the Middle East, the United States, Britain, Germany, Italy, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.

At least 2,95,155 Bangladeshis found jobs in over 100 countries during the January-April period, up from 1,92,725 in the same period last year, according to the state-run Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) statistics.

Booming economies in the Middle East and the Gulf region, as well as an ageing population in European countries and rising skills of Bangladeshi workers were driving demand for Bangladeshi labour, officials said.