Saudi ban on recruitment goes

After a seven year hiatus, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has finally lifted the ban on recruiting male Bangladeshi workers. As the largest destination for our workers, the news is very welcome. A lifting of the ban means that both skilled and unskilled job categories are open for Bangladeshis interested in getting employment in KSA. 

We are informed that agencies will not be able to charge extra for visas to the kingdom as had been the case before and that from now on Saudi employers will bear all the costs including air fare and service charges that used to be levied on the workers. Previously when there was no ban on travel, workers were forced to spend anywhere between Taka five and 10 lakhs to get visas. It is expected that this will not be the case anymore. The breakthrough comes after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina paid a visit to KSA in June and now comes the acid test of minimising recruitment costs.  

But for any of this to become binding, one would expect a comprehensive memorandum of understanding to be signed between the relevant agencies in the two countries so that our expatriate workers are not short-changed either here by the recruiting agencies, whether public or private, or by their employers in the host country. Authorities need to put in place a transparent and workable recruitment process that agencies will have to adhere to. Otherwise, unscrupulous recruiters will find ways to fleece unsuspecting workers of monies in the name of visa processing.