Malaysia has said a reported plan to recruit 200,000 Bangladeshi workers over the next six months does not represent an official decision of either the Malaysian or Bangladeshi government.

Malaysian Communications Minister Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil made the clarification at a post-Cabinet meeting press conference in Putrajaya on Wednesday, following remarks by Bangladesh's State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shah Alam.

Fahmi said he had contacted Malaysian Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri R. Ramanan regarding the matter and was informed that the statement made by the Bangladeshi junior minister did not represent the official position of the Bangladesh government.

“I contacted the Human Resources Minister on the matter. He informed me that this was not an official statement by the Bangladesh government. As far as I know, a junior minister made the statement, so it does not represent an official decision of the Bangladesh government,” Fahmi said.

Earlier, Shah Alam said Malaysia planned to recruit around 200,000 workers from Bangladesh within the next six months. He said the process of sending workers would begin in phases from late September and be completed within six months.

According to Shah Alam, the workers would be recruited through companies approved by Malaysian authorities, with 10,000 workers expected to be sent to Malaysia without paying any recruitment costs.

He made the announcement to journalists after Malaysian High Commissioner Mohammad Shuhada Osman met Bangladesh's Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moin Khan at the Secretariat on August 30.

Fahmi's latest remarks mean the recruitment of 200,000 Bangladeshi workers cannot yet be considered a formally finalised decision between Malaysia and Bangladesh.

Malaysia restricted the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers in 2024 following allegations involving exploitation, debt bondage, forced labour and workers being sent to the country without the jobs they had been promised.

However, discussions on reopening Malaysia's labour market to Bangladeshi workers have intensified in recent months. In June, Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman requested Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to consider reopening the Malaysian labour market to Bangladeshi workers.

Source: New Straits Times (NST), Malaysia