Malaysia has agreed to receive 18,000 Bangladeshi workers who previously missed a deadline to enter the country, said Dr Asif Nazrul, adviser to the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment.

“Now, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare of Bangladesh will work with our Malaysian counterparts to establish a roadmap for sending these workers,” the adviser said at the signing ceremony for a Memorandum of Collaboration (MoC)  at the Probashi Kalyan building in Dhaka.

The event, presided over by Ministry Secretary Md Ruhul Amin, saw the signing of the agreement between Bangladesh’s Wage Earners’ Welfare Board and Malaysia’s Social Security Organisation (PERKESO). The MoC was signed by Md Hamidur Rahman, Director General (Additional Secretary) of the Wage Earners’ Welfare Board, and PERKESO's Group CEO, Dato' Sri Dr Mohammed Azman bin Aziz Mohammad.

Under the agreement, starting from January 23, 2010, all Bangladeshi workers who have legally migrated to Malaysia will be covered by the Foreign Workers Compensation Scheme (FWCS). This includes essential protections such as medical benefits, temporary and permanent disablement benefits, dependents' compensation, funeral expenses, and rehabilitation support through Malaysia’s Social Security Organisation.