A total of 9.4 million Bangladeshi migrants are toiling in various parts of the globe and sending their hard-earned money back home.
The fruits of their hard-work are paying off as an incredible $15.31 billion in remittance was received in fiscal 2015 – the highest in the country’s history.
Although total migration has declined by 30% in 2014 compared to 2012, the number of Bangladeshi female migrants has been on the rise despite global economic slump.
One country which stands out in terms of employment of female workers is UAE. According to BMET statistics of June 2015, UAE is the home to 27% of total female migrants of Bangladesh.
According to the officials at Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry, two basic reasons can explain this rising trend. Firstly, the demand for female workers in UAE is higher than other countries. Secondly, attractive salary in UAE draws more female migrant workers there than others.
Another country that stands out in terms of female employment is Lebanon. While Lebanon has only 1.3% of total Bangladeshi migrants, it nevertheless has the second highest percentage of female migrants (24.3%) compared to all other countries. About 97 thousand female workers reside in Lebanon today.
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has the highest percentage of Bangladeshi migrants, of about 28.2%, all over the globe. The end of June 2015 statistics from BMET shows there are more than 2.6 million Bangladeshi migrants in KSA. Remittance inflow recorded $3.12 billion from KSA in FY14 as per Bangladesh Bank.
UAE ranks in second and is home to more than 2.3 million Bangladeshi migrants at the moment, and have sent home $2.68 billion remittance in FY14.
Oman is a third favorite overseas employment country today, with 10.7% of total Bangladeshi migrants, recording an impressive 1 million workers at the end of June 2015. Remittance inflow from Oman was $0.7 billion in FY14.
Malaysia and Singapore remains a common destination for overseas jobs, with about 7.14 lakh and 5.6 lakh Bangladeshi migrants respectively at the end of June 2015. Remittance inflows from Malaysia and Singapore stood at $1.06 billion and $0.43 billion respectively in FY14.
Kuwait and Qatar on the other hand has 5.2 % and 4.4% of total Bangladeshi migrants, placing sixth and seven in our top ten overseas employment countries list. Kuwait and Qatar brought in $1.1 billion and $0.26 billion respectively in FY14, and recorded of having around 4.9 lakh and 4.1 lakh migrants respectively at the end of June 2015.
Remittance sent by the migrants play a crucial role in the country’s economy, helping to reduce the overall incidence of poverty as well as maintaining a healthy balance of payments.
Faaria Tasin, The Daily Star
