Photo : Messenger
Returnee female migrants face distressing levels of societal stigmatization, while male workers struggle to secure fitting employment, observed a senior government official.
Addressing a recent program, Expatriate Welfare Secretary Ahmed Munirus Saleheen emphasized the urgent need to support these marginalized individuals.
Saleheen said that in response to the challenges faced by these returnee migrants, the government has initiated a comprehensive plan to rehabilitate them through the establishment of 30 welfare centers across the country.
Saleheen shared these insights during a media-interaction session focused on the "Recovery and Advancement of Informal Sector Employment (RAISE): Reintegration of Returning Migrants" project, organized by the Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry on Tuesday.
The initiative aims to assist two lakh returning migrants who arrived during the COVID pandemic. It encompasses various components such as cash incentives, counseling, technical training, self-employment support, entrepreneurship training, loan facilitation, provision of skill certificates, and other associated benefits.
The project's duration is from July 2021 until June 2024. Already 2.5 years have passed with little progress, as only 59,100 returnee migrants have registered so far and with no cash disbursement. The World Bank has provided a Tk 425 crore loan to run the project, while the government’s contribution is only Tk 2 crore and 30 lakh.
During the meeting, RAISE project director Sourendra Nath Saha presented the project's current status. Out of the estimated five lakh migrants who returned to the country in 2020 amid the COVID-19 outbreak, a significant portion remains unemployed. So far 55,405 male and 3,695 female migrants have registered. The ministry aims to establish a database encompassing migrants who are currently unaccounted for.
The government plans to disburse Tk 270 crore as cash incentives to beneficiaries, providing each with Tk 13,500 following registration and compliance with procedural requirements. Moreover, the project intends to sign memorandums of understanding with various departments to facilitate self-employment and entrepreneurship development.
To enhance employment prospects, 23,500 returnees will receive Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) to leverage their skills for employment opportunities domestically and internationally. Presently, the expatriate ministry operates 110 training centers offering skills training in 55 trades.
As of November 27th, a total of 1606 male and 126 female migrants have been referred and are poised to receive the cash incentive with the official commencement of the disbursement process.
Across 64 districts, the ministry has established 30 welfare centers to execute the reintegration project, with 11 districts categorized as major areas, 11 as medium areas, and one designated special area in Cumilla.
Collaborating with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and seven other sub-consultants including RMRRU, OKUP, Brac, Pratyashi, BSSK, Warebi, and KNUS, the ministry seeks to offer comprehensive support to returning migrants.
Messenger/Disha
