Saudi-bound migrants to get Tk 20,000-25,000 each from workers’ fund for hotel booking: ministry

Expatriates' welfare ministry has decided to provide Tk 20,000-25,000 to each Saudi Arabia-bound migrant worker for hotel booking (for institutional quarantine) -- from the Wage Earners Welfare Fund -- to reduce their huge financial burden.

The ministry will arrange the cash from the fund created with the money of expatriate workers, Ahmed Munirus Saleheen, secretary of Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry, told The Daily Star over phone this morning.

About providing financial support to Saudi-bound expatriate workers, Saleheen said if a migrant worker needs Tk 40,000 for hotel booking, the ministry will give them Tk 20,000 cash assistance.

The ministry will provide TK 25,000 to the Saudi-bound workers who need Tk 50,000 and above for hotel booking.

Saleheen said the financial assistance will also be provided to those who have already gone to Saudi Arabia since the authorities' new travel advisory on institutional quarantine in hotel, which came into effect from May 20.

According to the Saudi travel notice, there is no need for quarantine for non-residents and first-time visitors who have completed 14 days since receiving all doses of vaccination. They must provide a certificate or proof in accordance with the requirements set by the ministry of health.

About vaccinating all departing migrant workers, Saleheen said they are working to figure out how this "huge undertaking" can be implemented easily.

"We have asked the departing workers to apply through Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) for taking Covid-19 vaccine," he said.

Saleheen also said those who will only apply through BMET will be considered for vaccination.

QUICK RESPONSE TEAM TO BE FORMED TO ASSIST WORKERS

Considering the ongoing sufferings of the expatriate workers, the ministry today said they will form a "quick response team" to provide assistance to migrant workers to address various problems, the secretary said.

A director of Wage Earners Welfare Board will head the three-member team. Two other members will be selected from BMET and expatriates' welfare and overseas employment ministry, Saleheen also said.

"The dedicated team will look into different problems the workers are facing, not only during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, but also in other times," the secretary said.

Leaders of different recruiting associations told The Daily Star that around 40,000 expatriate workers -- waiting to go to Saudi Arabia in the next one and a half months -- could have saved almost Tk 260 crore in hotel expenses, had the government prioritised inoculating them against Covid-19.

A worker needs around Tk 60,000-70,000 for booking hotel for quarantine stay, said Saudi-bound workers and leaders of recruiting agencies.

Officials of Saudi Arabian Airlines on May 25 announced that they can no longer help migrant workers with hotel bookings.