On 25 January 2018, Bangladeshi women representing different age groups, and various parts of the nation congregated at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC). They gathered here, at the behest of RRMU, an evidence-based organization. Women from Bangladesh and abroad attended the event. They are now the earning members of their families and contributing individually.
The women of Bangladesh are new trendsetters in our overseas job market; Sri Lankan, Indonesian and Philippines women are the pioneers in these areas. The women here are being trained with basic skills, and their inherent skills which are a definite trend started very recently in Bangladesh though it was expected much earlier.
Women are seeking better employment abroad as they are earning more and creating their livelihood.
They are defying odds though there are many stories of torment, harassment, physical dehumanization but no hurdle preventing them from progress. Bangladeshi women have demonstrated their success in the RMG sector and they are taking this stride a step further by going overseas.
The fact is income from remittance is three-times more than RMG, twelve times more than FDI and seven-times more of the local investment and foreign aids. However, they are neglected in regards to policy drives.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, Executive Chairman, Power and Participation Research Center (PPRC), states that there is a decisive force behind the success story of migration, “Those who are courageous enough to go abroad by defying every odd, even knowing that there are chances of torture and being scammed, swindled or double-crossed.” The women or men are searching the opportunities by themselves and going abroad to seize it, and many of them take great risks. Hossain explains that Bangladeshis across the world are exposed to a productive environment, “These nations are already established with a reputation of a law-abiding and a diligent workforce. So, this is very important for Bangladesh. There is no denying the facts that we are very interested in discussing the amount of money being sent by the migrants, but attention to solving pertinent issues of troubles faced by them is comparatively less.” He further emphasized that this money is used as a tool to advance the nation, “Remittance is a driving force in the development of our many sectors, but migrant demands remained unsolved in many areas. There is also traceability issues. A point of strength has to be created for the voices of the migrants and realizing this goal this type of congregation is indispensable.”
Shamsul Alam, Senior Secretary, Government of Bangladesh, exposed an interesting insight into the tradition and family dynamics of migration. He pointed out that the story is not often one of success, “There are haunting tales of men and women; many untold stories of defalcation, forgery, twinges, and spasm of separation along with tragedy that lies with migration.”
The state always learns from its people, and it only goes forward with the advancement of its people. The migrants are not mere expendables. For the 11 million migrants, this journey is one of opportunity towards a better tomorrow. The Bangladeshi women are 12% of the total migrating population in 2016. These women are now coming forward and working in the hospitality industry in many nations. This development is essential and allows for Bangladesh to attain a better future.
Trends, Determinants, and Impact of Migration
• Bangladesh workers first began significant emigration in the 1960s when the UK opened its doors. But short-term migration for employment is said to have started in the 1970s, picking up the pace by the end of the 1980s. Momentum quickened again during the 2000s, with a sharp increase in the flow in 2005, but this was short-lived. In recent years, the number of workers going abroad hovered roughly around half a million annually.
• Key destination countries include Bahrain, Kuwait, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates. After 2007, the mix of these countries for workers from Bangladesh has changed, with a sharp decline in the flow of workers to Kuwait, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia. This contraction was counterbalanced to some extent, however, by a rise in the flow of workers to Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, and Singapore. By 2005, the eight major destination countries accounted for over 95% of the flow, with nearly 60% unskilled employment. By 2014, the share of workers received in these countries declined to 74%, with the remaining migrant workers finding employment in other countries, doubling from 13% in 2005 to 26% in 2014.
• In the past, female migrant workers from Bangladesh accounted for a small and negligible proportion of the total, but the annual trend rose consistently from 2000 to 2012. In 2014, the number of female migrant workers more than doubled to 76,000 from only more than 37,000 in 2012. From 2000 to 2015, Jordan and Lebanon were the major destinations for female workers—more than 50% engaged in domestic work and about 10% in garment factories or related work. By skill composition, the unskilled constitute the largest number of Bangladesh workers, at 45% in 2014, bringing it back to the 1990 and 2005 average after it surged to 73% in 2010 and declined to 62% in 2012 (Figure 2). The share of skilled and semiskilled declined in 2014: 45% to 23% for skilled, 10% to 3% for semiskilled and 0.07% to 0.01% for professional. For women, data before 2005 are not available; data from 2005 to 2014 reveal more unskilled migrant workers, at 67%, compared with 55% for men.
• Economic, demographic, and social factors are among the key factors influencing the flow of overseas migration of workers. Migration flow is positively correlated with GDP growth in Bangladesh (World Bank 2012), and the long-term trend has remained positive for more than 2 decades as economic growth has accelerated. This steady flow of overseas employment, despite economic progress, suggests other factors at play, including employment opportunities at home and expected higher earnings in countries with demand for migrant workers.
• It is worth examining whether migration is induced by poverty in Bangladesh, although this does not imply that the poor benefit more from migration than upper-income groups. The associated high costs of migration brought on by the imposition of expensive recruitment fees make access to migration opportunities highly skewed in favor of upper-income groups. Other costs and potential risks, such as payment to intermediaries at various stages of the recruitment process, increase the burden of prospective migrant workers. Those from lower-income groups, therefore, potentially find themselves using illegal channels to migrate abroad, leaving them more prone to abuse and violence, particularly for women.
KEY MESSAGES:
* Overseas employment of Bangladeshi workers is a major source of employment and is likely to remain so in the near future.
* Migration flow is positively correlated with gross domestic product growth in Bangladesh and the long-term trend has continued to be positive for more than 2 decades as economic growth has accelerated.
* Migrant workers’ remittance to Bangladesh is a significant source of foreign exchange, second only to readymade garments.
* High costs of migration brought on by high recruitment fees and charges by intermediaries make access to migration opportunities highly skewed in favor of the upper-income groups.
* Bilateral agreements between the sending and receiving countries, the recognition of skills of migrant workers and the governance of the recruitment process and deployment of overseas workers are critical factors to further support overseas employment in Bangladesh.
Sources: ADB Briefs: No 63, 2016
