Malaysia to hire 2 lakh  workers in 6 months

Malaysia has expressed interest in recruiting around 200,000 Bangladeshi workers over the next six months, said State Minister for Local Government Mir Shahe Alam while briefing journalists after a meeting between Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan and Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Mohammad Shuhada Othman at the Secretariat on Sunday. 

The government is keen to take the existing friendly relations between Bangladesh and Malaysia to a new height, said Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan. He stressed the need to expand cooperation between the two countries in manpower export, renewable energy, infrastructure, education, healthcare, trade and other sectors.
 
In the meeting, the Malaysian high commissioner expressed satisfaction over the recent visit of the Bangladesh prime minister to Malaysia, describing it as successful. The two sides later discussed various aspects of bilateral relations. 

The meeting discussed the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia and registration of undocumented Bangladeshi workers already living there. The two sides also discussed creating employment opportunities for Bangladeshi engineers in Malaysia, constructing hospitals through joint initiatives, and increasing opportunities for Bangladeshi students to pursue higher education in Malaysia. 

Cooperation in renewable energy, investment opportunities and joint production of sports equipment also came up for discussion. The two sides also discussed strengthening economic cooperation in electric vehicle imports, the construction sector and halal food, among other areas. 

Of them, around 10,000 workers would have the opportunity to travel to Malaysia without having to bear recruitment-related costs, he said. 

The Shahe Alam said around 800,000 registered Bangladeshi workers are currently employed in Malaysia. The process of sending additional workers to the country and registering undocumented Bangladeshi workers already residing there is also underway. 

The registration process for undocumented workers may begin by the end of September, he added. Both sides expressed interest in transforming the longstanding friendly relations between Bangladesh and Malaysia into a stronger and more effective economic partnership. 

Local Government Division Secretary Md Shahidul Hasan and senior officials of the ministry were also present at the meeting.