Expatriates Welfare’ and Overseas Employment Adviser Asif Nazrul on Wednesday said Malaysia would take in significantly less number of workers from Bangladesh within a year than many expect.

Due to the limited role of syndicates, Malaysia would take in maximum 30,000 to 40,000 workers within next year, far lower than the 1-1.2 million many expect the Southeast Asian country to accept.

The problem lies in the bilateral deal signed during the Awami League regime, Adviser Asif Nazrul pointed out while addressing a seminar at the International Mother Language Institute.

As per the deal, the Malaysian government would provide a list of recruiting agencies, infamously known as syndicate members in Bangladesh, and the Bangladeshi side would decide on the final list of agencies.

Now, the Malaysian government cannot be forced to rescind the deal, nor can the Bangladesh government risk facing public anger at home by returning to the old reliance on the covetous syndicate of recruiting agencies, the adviser noted.

The government can seek a middle path: selecting a few agencies to send in maximum 30,000-40,000 workers, he hinted. If government sends no worker at all the families of all these workers will face financial crisis, and almost two lakhs more would be on the line as the Malaysian side would inevitably lose confidence in Bangladesh, Asif Nazrul said.

In the seminar titled "Japan's Labour Market: Opportunities and Challenges," Asif Nazrul said many Bangladeshi aspirant workers are studying Japanese language well but to work there, they do not have the necessary occupational skills, eroding their prospects.

The government has set up a dedicated “Japan Cell” to help the aspirant workers receive the necessary training and apply for work in Japan bypassing syndicates. The government is also working on signing a public-private partnership agreement to train workers.