Middle East countries -- Saudi Arabia and Jordan have taken initiatives to bring undocumented Bangladeshi female workers under legal status. Saudi Arabia has already started the legalization process.
Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul shared the information with journalists on Tuesday upon his return from a visit to Saudi Arabia.
He said, “During my previous visit to Saudi Arabia, I requested the relevant minister to legalize undocumented Bangladeshis. In this visit, I learned that they have already started the process of legalizing undocumented female workers.”
During the visit, Asif Nazrul met with Dr Abdullah Nasser Abuthnain, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development of Saudi Arabia, on the sidelines of the 7th Global Occupational Safety and Health Conference (GOSH7) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He also met with a minister from Jordan.
In the meeting, the Jordanian side mentioned that undocumented Bangladeshi female workers in Jordan may also be legalized if they express interest.
In the past 21 years (from 2004 to April 2025), Saudi Arabia has recruited nearly 600,000 Bangladeshi female workers, while Jordan has employed 211,000 Bangladeshi women during the same period.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has urged Jordan to increase the recruitment of Bangladeshi male workers.
bd-pratidin/GR
