‘Why do your workers pay when Saudi employers foot the bill?’

State minister quotes envoy on recruitment costs; draws protests

State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Md Nurul Haque Nur yesterday quoted Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Dr Abdullah ibn Dhafer ibn Ubayya as questioning why Bangladeshi migrant workers pay recruitment costs when employers in Saudi Arabia bear all expenses, including airfare.

The remarks, made in the ambassador’s presence at a views-exchange meeting with recruiting agencies at the BIAM Foundation Auditorium in Dhaka, drew angry protests from agency representatives.

“The ambassador revealed a secret to us today that we did not know. He said the kafeel [sponsor or employer] there pays for everything, including airfare, to hire workers from Bangladesh. Then why do our people pay money to go to KSA, he asked,” Nurul Hoque said.

Recruiting agency representatives responded by chanting “fake, fake” at the state minister.

Seeking to calm the situation, Nurul acknowledged that Bangladeshi workers might have to pay for visas in many cases to compete with workers from countries such as India and Pakistan.

Addressing the meeting as chief guest, Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury pledged to take a tough stance against syndicates and irregularities in the recruitment sector.

The minister said he would meet recruiting agency owners to discuss ways to reduce migration costs and fix medical examination fees within the next two days to prevent overcharging.

He also said Saudi authorities had announced automatic extensions for visas that expired due to wartime disruptions.

BNP Chairman’s Adviser Dr Enamul Haque Chowdhury said the government wanted to strengthen ties with Saudi Arabia by sending more skilled workers alongside unskilled ones.

Translating key points of the Saudi ambassador’s intended speech into Bangla, Enamul said the Saudi embassy in Dhaka had issued 3,10,415 work visas and 800,623 visas in total, including Hajj, Umrah and visit visas, since the BNP government took office in February.