Shah Alam Nur
Hong Kong has placed a lucrative offer for Bangladeshi workers as the densely populated country has shown its keen interest to recruit 300,000 domestic helps bearing all the expenses relating to their migration, officials said.

The domestic workers will also be paid US$ 480 (Tk 38,400) as monthly salary. (US$1 = Tk 80).

A five-member delegation from Hong Kong now visiting Bangladesh placed the proposal for hiring domestic hands bearing all migration and travelling expenses.

The team also held discussions with the high-ups of Labour and Employment Ministry and Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET) in this regard.

"Yes, Hong Kong gave us a conditional proposal to hire 0.3 million domestic assistants from our country," BMET Director General (DG) Begum Shamsun Nahar told the FE.

According to the proposal, the domestic helps will have to learn Chinese and English language before departing Dhaka.

"We have accepted the offer and taken measures to send our well trained workforce to Hong Kong," she said, adding that the interested workers will be trained up in our country's 14 training centres.

The BMET DG said there are huge demands for Bangladeshi domestic workers all over the globe but the country lacks in trained workforce.

"Now we're working towards the goal to maintain momentum of the growth as it becomes a major requirement from the manpower importing countries," she said.

Hong Kong, which is known for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour, recruited domestic workers from Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines but it has now shown interest in Bangladesh.

Manpower officials said at least 2000-3000 domestic workers can be sent abroad every month and they will be able to start the migration process smoothly.

A total of 30,579 women went abroad out of 567,505 job seekers in 2011, BMET data said.

Nearly 183,000 female workers have gone abroad in last twenty years.