Bangladesh labour supply to Malaysia to increase
Malaysia, Nov. 13 (NsNewsWire) — Bangladesh is ready to help supply labour to meet demand from Malaysia’s agriculture and plantation industries for workers and this can be best done through the government to government transfer system between both nations.
“There are around 500,000 Bangladeshi laborers across Malaysia at the moment, except in Sabah. Through the government to government system, we can see an increase in labor supply from Bangladesh to address the issue in the agricultural and plantation sectors,” said Bangladeshi High Commissioner to Malaysia, A.K.M. Atiqur Rahman in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysia’s agriculture sector has been reliant on Indonesian and Filipino workers, but the growth of the oil palm plantation sector in Indonesia has led to an outflow of it nationals back there, reports Malaysian Reserve.
Atiqur said the Malaysian and Bangladeshi governments are also now looking at increasing the labor supply from Bangladesh for the construction and manufacturing sectors.
“Construction and manufacturing are sectors that requiring large amount of labors. The Malaysian and Bangladesh government are aware of this.
“It is thus under the Malaysian government consideration, specifically under the committee of the Malaysian Human Resource department to increase Bangladeshi labor supply in the near term into Malaysian construction and manufacturing industries,” said Atiqur.
Atiqur said the government to government transfer of labor system has led to the recent decision to recruit 12,000 Bangladeshi workers in various sectors in Sarawak.
There are currently about 5,000 Bangladeshi workers in various sectors of the state, particularly in plantation and construction.
Atiqur said his government is currently working on enhancing economic ties with Malaysia and expects trade figures to improve if the free trade agreement (FTA) between Bangladesh and Malaysia materialises.
“We are negotiating to finalise the FTA,” said Atiqur.
Malaysia’s exports to Bangladesh from 2013 to June 2014 amounted to US$130 million, while imports from there totalled US$1.8 billion.
Malaysian companies have invested in Bangladesh in various sectors, ranging from telecommunications, power, edible oil, healthcare, infrastructure, residential and distribution according to Atiqur.
“Bangladesh offers labor supply, facilities and the infrastructure to consider relocating their operations to address the labor issues here,” said the Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (BMCCI) Honorary Secretary General, Raquib Mohammad Fakhrul.
Atiqur and Raquib were speaking at press conference ahead of “Showcase Bangladesh 2014”.
Showcase Bangladesh 2014, which is open to members of the public, will be the third event to be held in Malaysia, featuring 40 exhibitors showcasing Bangladeshi products and services.
The BMCCI will be organizing the event from Nov 14 to Nov 16, 2014, at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC).