The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Bangladesh has a golden opportunity to avail the vast manpower market in the developed countries if proper training was given to the unskilled and semi skilled labourers of the country.

Proper government initiatives as well as necessary training imparted by public and private levels could make a good scope of the country to export its manpower in the United States of America (USA), Canada, Australia and some other European countries.

Presently Middle Eastern countries are the main source of remittances for Bangladesh. Most of the workers in the Middle Eastern countries are not skilled though they are contributing a big chunk of remittances of the country.

If the country sends skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled manpower to those countries than the flow of remittances would be increased substantially which would help boost the country's economy, said an official of the concerned department. It said that necessary initiatives are urgently needed to be taken for availing that vast manpower markets in different services sectors in the developed countries. The flow of annual remittances from different countries to Bangladesh is increasing every year.

The volume of remittance would be increased if proper patronisation from the government and required trainings from public and private centres were given to unskilled and semi skilled manpower of the country. The Bangladesh Bank Annual report said, since 2001 the flow of annual remittance is increasing every year.

In the year 2001 the amount of expatriates remittance stood to US $1882.1 million.

Remittances from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (UK), Italy, Kuwait, United States of America (USA), Qatar, Oman, Singapore, Germany, Bahrain, Japan, Malaysia and other countries stood US $ 5978.5 million in the fiscal year 2007 which was 4801.9 million in 2006.

Sources from the concerned authority said there is a vast scope for Bangladeshi people to work in the ship dockyards in USA, Canada and Australia.

Bangladesh could easily avail that positive chance by giving training to the unskilled and semi- skilled manpower and sending them to those countries.

And some of the developed countries have been considering to take 'guest worker scheme' for importing unskilled and semi skilled manpower from other countries with a view to mitigate the manpower crisis in restaurants, cafes and other sectors.

The labour market of Australia is decreasing at 1.9 per cent every year as India and China import most of the skilled manpower from that country.

Besides, the big demand of unskilled and semi-skilled manpower, there is also a wide scope for Bangladesh in sending skilled manpower to the European countries.

Experts suggested to take urgent initiatives for setting up required training centres for giving necessary training to the manpower of the country with a view to avail the labour markets of those countries.

Otherwise Bangladesh would lose its manpower export markets and some neighbouring countries may seize the opportunity.