Middle East Turmoil Puts Bangladesh’s Overseas Labour Market at Risk

Ongoing instability in the Middle East is creating uncertainty in Bangladesh’s overseas labour market. Increasing attacks by Houthi rebels in Saudi Arabia, the country’s largest destination for Bangladeshi workers, have raised concerns among more than 2.5 million Bangladeshis working there. Efforts to reopen suspended labour markets and explore new destinations have made little progress amid a lack of effective diplomatic initiatives. If the downturn in overseas employment continues, Bangladesh’s remittance sector could also suffer. Several experienced observers have expressed this concern.

Migration experts warn that the continued closure of labour markets and the lack of growth in overseas recruitment will put further pressure on employment opportunities at home. The current government has yet to achieve significant progress in reopening suspended markets. Critics also allege that individuals linked to the previous authoritarian regime remain in several Bangladeshi diplomatic missions and are failing to play an effective role in expanding overseas employment opportunities.

In Saudi Arabia, the annual iqama (residency permit) fee for migrant workers has been set at 9,700 riyals per person. Several Bangladeshi workers say the high cost has discouraged them from continuing to work in the country. Some have been unable to afford the fee and have returned home after leaving their jobs.

Meanwhile, thousands of Bangladeshis seeking jobs in Iraq are facing uncertainty because of an unofficial suspension of the recruitment process, which they say stems from bureaucratic complications at the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment. Although their job demand letters have been verified by the Bangladeshi embassy, they have not received the required emigration clearance from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET). Many are running out of time as their medical examination results and visas approach expiry.

Even after the Bangladesh embassy in Baghdad completed verification, the workers have not received BMET clearance. Many are now burdened with debt and deeply worried about their future. After a gap of seven years, Iraq’s labour market reopened during the previous caretaker government following sustained efforts by private recruitment agencies. More than 20,000 Bangladeshis subsequently found jobs there. Bangladeshi workers in Iraq earn around US$400 a month, with employers covering accommodation and food costs.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had pledged before the election that a BNP government would create overseas employment opportunities for 10 million people over five years. However, critics say a lack of cooperation from officials allegedly linked to the previous regime is obstructing the target.

Bangladeshi businesspeople in Baghdad told the daily Inqilab that major development projects have begun in Iraq following the departure of all US forces from the country. They said Iraqi employers are particularly interested in recruiting Bangladeshi workers. With full support from the government and the embassy, they believe more than 100,000 Bangladeshis could find jobs in Iraq within six months.

The businesspeople who expressed this view include Sabbir Khan, Mr. Yasin, Mr. Titon, Mr. Sohel, Mr. Rubel, Abdul Matin and Mr. Zia. The Bangladesh embassy in Baghdad has verified recruitment visas and is awaiting the issuance of emigration clearances through the Online Immigration Permit (OIP) platform for more than 4,000 workers. However, the process has been temporarily suspended following verbal instructions from Expatriates’ Welfare Secretary Mokhtar Ahmed.

As a result, thousands of prospective workers are struggling to resolve their cases. BMET Additional Director General Zillur Rahman recently told the media that the issuance of emigration clearances for Iraq would resume once the expatriates’ welfare secretary gave verbal instructions.

With recruitment from Bangladesh on hold, Iraqi employers are increasingly turning to neighbouring countries to hire workers. Bangladeshi applicants who already have Iraqi visas have urged Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to intervene immediately and restart the BMET clearance process.

Overseas Employment Declines Despite Global Demand

BMET sources say around 12.5 million Bangladeshi men and women work in different countries, sending substantial remittances home despite global challenges. Their contributions support the development of both Bangladesh and their host countries. However, employment opportunities for Bangladeshis seeking work in the Middle East have declined in recent months amid regional instability following US and Israeli attacks on Iran. Malaysia, another major destination for Bangladeshi workers, has also yet to formally reopen its suspended labour market.

The Bangladesh High Commission in Kuala Lumpur has begun attesting job demand letters, but medical examinations for workers in Bangladesh have not resumed. As a result, uncertainty over recruitment to Malaysia continues. Despite various government initiatives, the number of Bangladeshis travelling abroad for employment has fallen by around 33 per cent. Earlier this month, Malaysian Communications Minister and government spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil said reports that Malaysia would recruit 200,000 workers from Bangladesh over the next six months did not represent the Malaysian government’s official position.

The government has taken several initiatives to reopen the long-suspended labour markets in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates, but no effective progress has been achieved. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has also created uncertainty in Bangladesh’s largest overseas employment destinations. The number of workers travelling to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait has declined.

The previous interim government had announced plans to send hundreds of thousands of workers to Japan, but there has been little sign of progress towards that target. According to BMET data, 838,894 Bangladeshis went abroad for employment between January 2025 and September 29 of that year. During the same period in 2026, the figure fell to 563,693. This represents a decline of 275,201 workers, or about 33 per cent.

Between 2013 and 2024, six important overseas labour markets, including Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Libya, Bahrain and Oman, were closed to Bangladeshi recruitment at different times. Bangladesh is currently the largest source country for foreign workers in Malaysia, accounting for about 37 per cent of the country’s foreign workforce. However, the Malaysian labour market closed to Bangladeshi recruitment on May 31, 2024. The interim government failed to reopen it, and the current government has also yet to secure a formal reopening.

On August 28, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment issued a press release stating that “the door to employment for Bangladeshis in Malaysia will open soon.” However, the ministry has not issued an official announcement confirming the reopening or provided a clear timeline for when recruitment will resume.

Recruitment to Japan Remains Limited

During a visit to Japan on May 25 last year, former interim government Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus announced that Japanese authorities and businesses would recruit at least 100,000 Bangladeshi workers over the next five years. However, only 1,564 Bangladeshis went to Japan for employment in 2025. In the first nine months of 2026, the number was 1,608.

Since the conflict in the Middle East began in February, demand for workers in Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar has fallen sharply. The decline in recruitment to Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh’s largest overseas labour market, has had a significant impact on overall overseas employment.

During the first nine months of 2025, 568,083 Bangladeshis went to Saudi Arabia for work. The figure fell to 307,887 during the same period in 2026, a decline of 45.8 per cent. In May this year, Qatar’s Labour Minister Dr Ali bin Saeed bin Samikh Al Marri expressed strong interest in recruiting Bangladeshi workers in several sectors during a meeting with Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury. However, there has been no significant change in the number of workers sent to Qatar in the four months since the meeting.

Recruitment to Kuwait has also declined. Around 34,000 Bangladeshis travelled there for work during the first nine months of 2025, compared with about 22,000 during the same period this year.

Lack of Effective Diplomatic Efforts

Mofiz Uddin, a former joint secretary-general of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), believes the government has not taken sufficiently effective and realistic steps to fulfil its pledge to increase overseas recruitment.

He said, “After the government made confusing statements at various levels about Malaysia’s labour market, the Malaysian government’s formal rejection dealt another blow to the prospects of reopening the market. Meanwhile, ongoing geopolitical instability in the Middle East and the lack of effective bilateral negotiations have stalled the recruitment of new workers in major markets, including the United Arab Emirates.”

He also said the expatriates’ welfare minister and state minister had not yet visited Gulf countries to expand employment opportunities. He claimed that Indian ministers regularly visit Middle Eastern countries to secure overseas employment opportunities for their citizens. Mofiz Uddin stressed the need for greater diplomatic engagement by Bangladeshi missions to increase overseas recruitment and remittance inflows. He also called on the government to take practical steps to ensure fair wages and protection for Bangladeshi workers abroad.

He expressed hope that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was making every effort to accelerate overseas recruitment and that the prime minister’s initiatives would soon produce significant results in expanding labour markets.

Houthi Attacks Raise Further Concerns

Last Thursday, Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched two attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Three Saudi citizens were killed, while several people, including foreign nationals, were injured.

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation confirmed the incident in a statement on Friday. Following the attack, the United States issued a travel warning for its citizens in the Middle East. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency also advised airlines to avoid additional parts of Saudi airspace.

The Bangladesh government has strongly condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. The worsening security situation, combined with the closure of key labour markets, declining recruitment and delays in processing workers’ clearances, has intensified uncertainty for Bangladeshi migrant workers. Without stronger diplomatic engagement and faster administrative action, the government’s target of sending 10 million workers abroad over the next five years will face significant challenges.