Dhaka, Riyadh seal labour recruitment pact

In a landmark move set to reshape one of the world’s most vital migration corridors, Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia have signed their first-ever comprehensive agreement on the general recruitment of Bangladeshi workers. The deal was inked in Riyadh on Monday by Bangladesh’s Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul and Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, Engineer Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al-Razi. Marking a historic milestone in the 50-year diplomatic relationship between the two nations, the agreement formalises what has long been an informal but massive labour flow. Saudi Arabia is Bangladesh’s single largest overseas job market, hosting over 2.2 million expatriate workers – yet until now, no overarching framework governed general recruitment. Only two limited...