This news report features the work of Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Programme (OKUP), Bangladesh.
The government is considering setting up separate cells at different Bangladesh missions abroad to look after female expatriate workers” interest.
“The government will take initiative to assist female expatriate workers abroad through Bangladesh missions,” said Labour and Employment Minister Engineer Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain. The minister was addressing a study report launching ceremony as the chief guest at Dhaka Sheraton Hotel in the city on Tuesday.
He said the government will hold talks with the respective governments to ensure that the female expatriate workers do not face any harassment abroad.
The minister said around 65 lakh Bangladeshi migrants are working abroad of which one-lakh are women as workers while the number is increasing rapidly.
Majority of them are employed as domestic workers. The UNDP and Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Programme (OKUP) jointly revealed the findings of the report titled ”HIV vulnerabilities faced by women migrants: From Bangladesh to the Arab States”.
Regional Programme Coordinator of the UNDP based in Colombo Caitlin Wiesen and chairman of the OKUP Shakirul Islam presented the report.
Workers from Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka, who lived in Bahrain, Lebanon and the UAE have participated in the study.
The report showed 85 per cent of Bangladeshi migrant female workers are subjected to physical abuse, while 20 per cent are sexually abused abroad.
Representatives from the two organisations interviewed 250 migrant workers who experienced undocumented migration and faced vulnerable situations such as sexual abuse and deportation on grounds of testing HIV-positive.
Replying to a question, Mosharraf said primarily an officer will be appointed in Bangladesh missions in countries hosting maximum Bangladeshi female workers for dealing with the women workers” problem.
He said earlier most of the Bangladeshi migrant female workers used to be trafficked abroad or sent illegally by brokers and many of them faced various vulnerabilities.
The minister said Bangladeshi overseas workers who go through government channel are imparted three weeks” training to equip them with the know-how to face various challenges, including preventive measure to various diseases, legal help, overcoming cultural shocks and so on. “As a result, the risk of vulnerability is less.”
The recommendations in the study report were made in three phases, for both countries of origin and host countries, because female workers are being abused abroad as domestic help.
Secretary in charge of the Ministry of Expatriate Welfare Elias Ahmed, UNDP country director Stefan Priesner and UNAIDS country coordinator Dr Salil Panakadan also spoke at the function.
Read Launching Report and Media Clippings (in .pdf).
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