Reza Mahmud :
Saudi Arabia, the largest host of Bangladeshi migrant workers, is now starting to take doctors from Bangladesh for the first time in its history.
Such development will make the remittance inflow from the Middle Eastern country positively, sources said.
As per the Kingdom’s recent decision, a number of Bagladeshi doctors, nurses and other medics will be exported to the country soon.
Bangladesh Medical Association data showed, there are only a few dozen clinicians among nearly three million Bangladeshi expatriate workers residing in the Kingdom.
A total of 3.28 billion USD was send from Saudi Arabia as remittance to Bangladesh in 2023 which was the second highest close to 3.67 billion from United Arab Emirate (UAE).
When contacted, Gazi Mohammad Shahed Anwar, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of the Expatriates welfare and overseas employment told The New Nation on Saturday, “The process already has started of sending doctors, nurses and other medical technologists to Saudi Arabia.
A recruiting agency has submitted an application to the ministry to get permission to send doctors to the Kingdom. We have given them some requirements to fulfill.”
“We also are scrutinizing the demand of Saudi Arabia’s concerned recruiters through our mission,” he said.
Meanwhile, stakeholders are hopeful that if doctors, nurses and other medics could be exported to Saudi Arabia, the remittance inflow will be increased sharply.
When contacted, Reaz-ul-Islam, Senior Vice-President of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) told The New Nation on Saturday, “The process of exporting doctors and nurses to Saudi Arabia will be a very important development. It will increase the remittance earning several folds high.”
“It is clear that the wages of doctors will be higher than the ordinary workers,” he said.
In 2022, an agreement on the recruitment of medics was signed by both countries and the first Bangladeshi health workers departed for the Kingdom in November 2023.
“For a long time, Saudi Arabia didn’t recruit any medical staff from Bangladesh. But now we started recruiting them, because they already reach our criteria,” Riyadh’s Ambassador to Dhaka Essa Al-Duhailan told Arab News recently.
While the initial group consisted of some 60 clinicians, it was just the beginning.
“This number, insha’Allah, will jump in the near future … It’s just to tickle the market and to see how it’s going,” Al-Duhailan said.
“A team from the Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia already visited Bangladesh twice last year. And they will continue to visit Bangladesh to recruit more.”
The next group that is expected to depart for Saudi Arabia will consist of nurses.
Bangladesh’s more than 100 medical colleges produce large numbers of
certified doctors, nurses and medics.
Working in the Kingdom with top-quality equipment also offers them learning opportunities.
“The more medical staffers we can send and the more we can upgrade them in terms of quality, the more it will create a win-win situation for both countries,” said Shariful Hasan, associate director of the migration program of BRAC, the largest development organization based in Bangladesh.
“Besides, it will be helpful for our migrants … Our doctors, nurses, and medical staffers can also offer treatment to our migrants in the Kingdom.”
Currently, only 2 percent of Bangladeshi workers in the Kingdom are skilled professionals. Sending doctors and nurses will change the whole scenario positively.
