Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will visit Malaysia on June 21 and 22 to seek a durable fix for one of Bangladesh’s most vital overseas labour markets, which has lurched through repeated shutdowns.
The high-level talks are expected to replace that cycle of closure and reopening with a long-term, regular and transparent recruitment framework. Officials at the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment said Dhaka would prioritise amending the existing memorandum of understanding to ensure greater transparency, reopening a market that remains shut, slashing migration costs and regularising undocumented workers.
Malaysia has closed its labour market to Bangladesh three times. The latest suspension took effect on May 31, 2024. Under an MoU signed in 2021, Dhaka could not independently select recruiting agencies; the text explicitly assigned that power to the Malaysian government. An influential syndicate in Malaysia exploited the clause to seize control of the entire market.
The ministry said the forthcoming visit could yield an amendment to that provision, opening the market to all agencies. Dhaka is likely to propose granting access to all 423 recruiting agencies that were cleared during the former interim government’s tenure.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim earlier pledged to recruit workers at zero cost. Bangladesh now intends to press hard for a transparent hiring system built on that “zero migration cost” principle. It will also seek to equip workers with minimum-standard training so they can compete effectively and command fair wages and dignified conditions in Malaysia under international norms.
The talks could also address regularising undocumented Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia, although Dhaka’s stance is unambiguous. It will urge Malaysia to extend a humanitarian reprieve to those who entered legally on work visas but later lost their status; it will not recommend legalisation for illegal entrants.
Foreign ministry officials said Tarique Rahman and Anwar Ibrahim would hold a bilateral meeting at which the two sides are expected to sign two memorandums of understanding — on information and broadcasting, and culture — and two notes of exchange on counter-terrorism and FTA negotiations. The overriding priority, however, remains reopening the labour market. Rahman is also likely to call on King Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar and meet the chairmen of MMC Ports, AirAsia and Petronas.
Asked whether any new agreement on worker deployment would be signed during the visit, State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare Nurul Haque Nur told Bonik Barta: “When a prime minister travels, you normally get multiple MoUs across sectors. The joint working committee has long been discussing amendments to certain clauses of the existing MoU. That MoU prevents us from deciding which agencies send workers. The contract states clearly that the Malaysian government shall select the BRA of Bangladesh. As long as that clause remains, we can’t open the market to all. The committee has been trying to revise it for a long time.”
The state minister added, “Besides reopening the market, the trip might yield a breakthrough on cutting migration costs. The process of sending workers abroad could also become easier and more transparent.”