1.5 mil Bangladeshi workers not solely for Malaysia - Richard Riot

Malaysia will not be taking in all the 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers based on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in the country.

Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot said the number actually referred to the number of Bangladeshis registered with the ministry in Bangladesh to work in 139 countries worldwide.

“Malaysia is one of the countries. The actual amount of workers to be taken by Malaysia will be determined based on the request by the companies,” he said.

Asked on the actual number of foreign workers needed by Malaysia, Richard said his ministry is currently conducting a study on the matter.

“It has been carried out for several months now and is expected to be concluded within a few weeks,” he said at a press conference today.

Yesterday, Malaysia and Bangladesh signed a MoU to bring in 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers into Malaysia over a span of three years.

READ: Malaysia-Bangladesh sign MoU to recruit 1.5 million workers

READ: Import of Bangladeshi workers will not affect job opportunities for locals - Home Ministry

According to media reports, the recruitment would be carried out under the government-to-government (G2G) Plus System, which will help control or curb the involvement of agents, increase in payroll costs and hopefully, the exploitation of foreign workers.