312 more agencies get Malaysia recruitment nod

Malaysia has approved a total of 337 Bangladeshi recruiting agencies to send workers to the country, with 25 agencies selected directly and another 312 approved to operate as associate recruitment agencies.

Additionally, the country has agreed to recruit 10,000 workers at zero cost at the request of Bangladesh.

The state-owned Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL) will send them on special chartered flights without airfare or other migration-related costs.

The Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment shared the information in a press release on Friday.

With the development, the Malaysian labour market is set to reopen to Bangladeshi workers after 27 months of closure triggered by corruption, mismanagement, syndication and irregularities during the previous government, the press release said. It said the process was streamlined during Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s first foreign visit to Malaysia, during which he discussed the issue with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar.

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Malaysia has sole authority to select recruiting agencies under a memorandum of understanding signed with Bangladesh on 18 December 2022.

The government hopes Bangladesh’s interests will be better protected through a new MoU after the current agreement expires on 31 December.

According to the Foreign Ministry release, Malaysia selected the 25 recruiting agencies from a list of 423 prepared by the previous interim government.
It said the ministry had no involvement in the selection process.

The medical screening of the workers will initially begin at 16 medical centres.

Malaysia has reportedly agreed to exclude medical centres allegedly linked to the previous government from its existing approved list at the request of Bangladesh. A joint team from Malaysia’s Health Ministry, Human Resources Ministry and Home Ministry will visit Bangladesh and inspect medical centres before giving final approval under the new rules, the government said.

The government also said it was working to ensure greater protection for Bangladeshi workers, including an end to harassment at airports, direct joining of jobs at designated companies, regular payment of wages and benefits, and accommodation and medical services in accordance with Malaysian labour laws.

A 24-hour monitoring cell and help desk will also be established under the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment to address migration-related complaints quickly, according to the statement.

The government cautioned prospective workers against brokers and fraudulent recruitment networks, urging them not to make any financial transactions, undergo medical tests or submit passports until the ministry issues an official notice or directive detailing the recruitment process.