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Saudi Arabia is actively exploring the possibility of enlisting a greater number of highly skilled workers from Bangladesh to bolster its evolving market, as confirmed by a senior diplomat.
Furthermore, Saudi authorities are planning to enhance the infrastructure for biometric and fingerprint centres to streamline the recently mandated process for Bangladeshi visa applicants.
“Now, the Saudi local market is different from that of three to five years ago. We are now focusing more on skilled workers from Bangladesh and other destinations. Takamol, one of the Saudi companies, has signed an MoU with BMET to administer skills tests,” said Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh, Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan.
He made these remarks on Monday while visiting the Tasheer visa service centre to observe the biometrics and fingerprint procedure for Saudi work visas at Jamuna Future Park in the capital.
He mentioned that Saudi Arabia currently conducts skills tests for 28 different occupations. Additionally, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment has already established 70 training centres for Bangladeshi aspirant migrants to Saudi Arabia, with plans to increase this number to 100 over time.
The Saudi Ambassador said that fingerprints and biometrics are mandatory procedures for Saudi job visa holders, ensuring that the worker is not repatriated from the airport in case of a fingerprint mismatch.
Tasheer is ready to open new centres, including in Dhaka and any other areas where it is needed, said the ambassador, adding that they are currently evaluating the situation.
“We have shortened the process of fingerprint and biometrics from one hour to five minutes. Tahseer now issues 2,500 visas every day, which will be increased to 5,000 in a short time. I have asked them to make it 3,000,” he said.
Tasheer is currently operating three visa centres where they take fingerprints and biometrics. These centres are located in Jamuna Future Park, Baridhara, and Chattogram.
During his visit to the Tasheer office, the Saudi Ambassador met with representatives from the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), who presented a four-point demand to the ambassador. This demand includes the expansion of visa centres to other districts and at least five centres in Dhaka to smoothen the process.
BAIRA leaders also called upon the Saudi authorities to delegate the responsibility of managing the fingerprint procedure for Umrah applicants to BAIRA.
In response, the Saudi Ambassador mentioned that 90 percent of the fake fingerprints from Umrah applicants that they receive come from Bangladesh, which made them think twice.
The ambassador informed that about eight million Bangladeshi workers are employed in Saudi Arabia, sending nearly $5 billion in remittances to Bangladesh.
In his remarks regarding the recruitment of skilled workers, the ambassador emphasised that Bangladeshi workers are renowned for their strong work ethic, efficiency, and intelligence. He also highlighted that when Bangladeshi workers possess advanced skills, they are likely to command higher salaries, leading to increased remittances flowing into the country by default.
Messenger/Sajib
