Romania to take in 17,000 migrants
An eight-member Romanian consular mission is arriving in Dhaka today for a six-month stay during which they will issue around 17,000 visas to Bangladeshis seeking employment in the East European nation.
The move comes after Bangladesh requested the Romanian government to send a consular mission here as the latter currently operated its consular services from its embassy in New Delhi.
Last year, a Romanian consular mission came to Bangladesh and stayed for three months.
"Some 17,000 work permits have been pending and more applications are in the pipeline. So, the number of visas to be issued by the consular mission maybe even more during its six to seven months of stay," Bangladeshi Ambassador to Romania Daud Ali told The Daily Star yesterday.
They are recruited mostly in the construction, restaurant, logistics, factories, and shipbuilding sectors.
"Undoubtedly, this is a good scope for Bangladeshi jobseekers as well as for businesses in Romania. The country needs foreign workers for its thriving economy," he said.
According to foreign ministry officials, Bangladesh opened its embassy in Romania in 2020 when the recruitment formally started.
In that year, less than 500 Bangladeshis migrated to Romania for jobs, which increased to some 2,500 in 2021 and 14,500 in 2022.
The monthly salary range for foreign workers is equivalent to Tk 70,000 to Tk 100,000 depending on the skill level, while accommodation and food allowance are provided by the employers.
Migration to the east European nation costs Tk 4.22 lakh.
The good thing for Romania is that when foreign workers work for four years they can apply for permanent residency.
However, violation of immigration rules, arbitrarily changing employers, and leaving for other countries are punishable offences, ambassador Daud Ali said.
Other European countries recruiting workers from Bangladesh include Italy and Greece, said industry insiders.
"If we can maintain discipline in the sector, improve our peoples' skills, we have lots of opportunities for jobs in Europe," said a foreign ministry official.
Ambassador Daud Ali said apart from jobs, the number of Bangladeshi students in Romania is also increasing because of its low tuition fees and part-time job opportunities.
Last year, a total of 609 Bangladeshi students were enrolled in Romanian universities and this year, the number is expected to be more than 1,600.
The average cost of universities (except for medical school) is around €2,500-3,000 (Tk 3.5-4 lakh) per year.
They can also work part-time jobs (20 hours per week) and cover food and living costs, Daud Ali said.
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