After the official opening of Malaysia's labor market to Bangladeshi workers through a bilateral agreement in 1992, the market experienced multiple closures and reopenings until 2008. However, starting in 2009, the labor market remained largely closed for Bangladeshi workers for an extended period.
The market closure was primarily due to significant irregularities in the recruitment process, including passport fraud, forged or incorrect information on passports, entry of criminals into Malaysia with fake documents, errors in manual immigration procedures, workers absconding from employers, and illegal employment through unscrupulous agents and brokers using travel visas. Such issues led the Malaysian government and employers to lose interest in hiring Bangladeshi workers. From 2009 to 2012, only a limited number of professional workers were allowed entry into Malaysia, while the general labor market remained closed.
In 2012, a G2G (Government-to-Government) agreement reopened the labor market for Bangladeshi workers. However, by 2015, only about 9,000 workers had been sent to Malaysia, despite an initial quota of 30,000 set by the Malaysian government. To facilitate this process, BMET (Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training) registered 1.4 million workers. Due to a lack of interest from employers in this method, the G2G approach was deemed unsuccessful.
Despite limited official migration, many Bangladeshi workers attempted to enter Malaysia illegally through sea routes and Thailand's borders, leading to accidents, arrests, and unauthorized employment. Tragic incidents included the discovery of mass graves of Bangladeshi migrants along Thailand's border in 2015, which caused national embarrassment and profound grief for affected families.
Given these challenges, the Malaysian government showed reluctance to reopen the labor market beyond the G2G model or a limited number of recruiting agencies. After extensive discussions between the two governments, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on February 18, 2016, allowing a hybrid approach of G2G and private recruitment through a maximum of 10 authorized agencies. This agreement, known as G2G Plus, aimed to mitigate irregularities by limiting the number of agencies and implementing stringent accountability measures.
The Malaysian government emphasized that recruitment through a controlled number of agencies would curb irregularities and facilitate accountability. Alongside this, Malaysia introduced the FWCMS (Foreign Workers Centralized Management System), an automated, online-based platform to ensure transparency. The FWCMS integrated various agencies and ministries, including Malaysia’s Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration Department, Ministry of Human Resources, and others, along with Bangladesh’s Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, BMET, the Bangladeshi High Commission in Malaysia, and authorized medical centers. This system significantly reduced document forgery and ensured workers received proper employment and wages.
However, agencies excluded from the G2G Plus system raised complaints, as did neighboring countries. In response, then-Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad temporarily halted the recruitment process to investigate these allegations.
After thorough verification by Malaysia's Ministry of Human Resources, then-Minister M. Kulasegaran informed the Malaysian Parliament on December 5, 2019, that no evidence was found to support the allegations. He also expressed interest in resuming the recruitment of workers from Bangladesh.
In this context, the Government of Bangladesh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Malaysia on December 19, 2021, to facilitate the export of manpower to Malaysia. As part of the agreement, the Bangladeshi government agreed that Malaysia would select a specific number of recruiting agencies from those licensed by the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment through an online automation system. Leaders of BAIRA (Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies) played a significant role in this process.
Six months after the MoU was signed, in June 2022, based on the decisions of a Joint Working Group meeting between the relevant ministries of both countries, the process of sending workers began through 25 recruiting agencies listed by the Malaysian government. Subsequently, this number was increased to 101, including BOESL (Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited). Between August 8, 2022, and May 31, 2024, a total of 476,672 workers were sent to Malaysia.
Using the online-based platform, the entire recruitment process—ranging from application submission, demand letter verification, ministry approvals, worker selection, health checks, pre-departure training, and orientation—was completed. Workers received BMET (Bureau of Manpower, Employment, and Training) clearance before their departure to Malaysia. This streamlined process minimized document forgery, enabling workers to join their employers in an orderly manner.
It is noteworthy that Malaysia often follows Singapore in economic and trade planning. Singapore employs Bangladeshi workers through six training centers and 14 recruiting agencies, ensuring a transparent and well-organized migration process. In a similar effort to reduce irregularities, the Malaysian government showed no interest in recruiting workers through an unlimited number of agencies.
However, recruiting agencies excluded from the list protested against Malaysia's decision, organizing human chains, meetings, rallies, and demonstrations that disrupted the migration process. In response, the ministry allowed licensed recruiting agencies to collaborate with non-listed agencies as associate agencies. This enabled non-listed agencies to participate in the recruitment process, including buying and selling visas, worker selection, and managing the supply chain as local agents of employers. Consequently, migration costs increased significantly.
Between the 2017-18 and 2022-24 periods, employment opportunities were created for 754,000 workers in Malaysia. This not only provided livelihood opportunities for the workers but also positioned Malaysia as the fourth-largest source of remittance to Bangladesh.
However, by May 31, 2024, nearly 17,000 workers with BMET clearance were unable to travel to Malaysia due to a lack of flights. Listed recruiting agencies were unfairly blamed for this, although the issue arose from a severe flight shortage during the Hajj season and the cancellation of several flights in the last three days of May due to adverse weather conditions. Despite these challenges, a record 45,135 workers were sent to Malaysia in May alone.
Notably, among the 89,106 workers who migrated to Malaysia from all 14 source countries in May, Bangladesh accounted for 45,135, representing 50.54% of the total.
To maximize the potential of the Malaysian labor market for Bangladeshi workers, it is essential to adopt a pragmatic approach regarding the immigration process and the number of agencies approved by the Malaysian government, rather than opposing the policies implemented by Malaysia.
If the listed recruiting agencies responsible for sending workers to Malaysia are allowed to operate freely, without harassment or false accusations, while adhering to the rules and processes set by both governments, they can play a pivotal role in reopening Malaysia's labor market for Bangladeshi workers.
To control migration costs, it is necessary to eliminate the involvement of intermediaries and associate agencies outside the authorized recruiting agencies of both countries. Instead, allowing quota-approved agencies to handle all migration processes directly can ensure safe migration while reducing migration costs by at least 50%.
Finally, Malaysia should not be treated as an exception in manpower export; rather, it should be considered in the same manner as other countries, with uniform policies applied across the board.
