A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on manpower recruitment from Bangladesh by Iraq was signed here on Saturday. Labour and Social Affairs Minister of Iraq Nassar Al-Rubaiee, who is leading a nine-member delegation to Bangladesh, and Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain signed the MoU on behalf of their respective sides at city’s Probashi Kalyan Bhaban. Later, Khandker Mosharraf told journalists that a labour market for Bangladeshi workers has been opened in Iraq where manpower export remained suspended since 1976 for various reasons, especially war. The minister said the delegation will visit the Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET) to see for themselves its activities before leaving the country on September 3. “An Iraqi delegation will arrive here with a demand letter for 1,000 workers on September 8, and the country will recruit about 100 nurses on an urgent basis,” the minister added. In response to a query over migration cost, the minister said details about it would be available when the Iraqi delegation will be here. In this regard, Iraqi Labour Minister Nassar Al-Rubaiee said the relation between the two countries has strengthened because of the deal. The minister also said the Iraqi government prefers Bangladesh than other countries in manpower recruitment but the migration cost has not been fixed yet. Expatriates’ Welfare Secretary Dr Zafar Ahmad Khan and BMET Director General Begum Shamsun Nahar were, among others, present at the signing ceremony. – UNB
