Labour migration from Bangladesh to Croatia is at risk since the authorities of the Balkan country is planning to suspend the issuance of new visas or work permits for Bangladeshis over allegations of using the country as a transit area for other destinations in Europe.
Croatia is thinking of enforcing the measure as a significant number of Bangladeshis did not join work there even after getting work permits and many others left the country illegally, according to an official message from Bangladesh mission in Hague.
The Bangladesh mission in the Netherlands, in the recent message, also informed Bangladesh authorities to develop a mechanism to prevent Bangladeshi workers鈥� movement to other countries using Croatia as a transit area.
An additional director general of Bangladesh鈥檚 Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training, Ashraf Hossain, said that the same problem was seen in the cases of migration to not only Croatia but also other nearby Schengen countries.
鈥楶eople first migrate to a southeast European country like Croatia with work permit and soon move to more developed Schengen countries as their targeted destination for a better life,鈥� he said.
The targeted destination countries include France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
Ashraf said that they were planning to motivate the workers to stay in the country for which he or she was given work permit.
Migrants鈥� rights activists, however, said that the problem lies in the total migration system.
鈥楪overnment agencies and recruiting agents are mainly responsible for the situation,鈥� said Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Program chairperson Shakirul Islam.
A worker spends Tk 10 to Tk 12 lakh to migrate to Croatia and, in advertisements by recruiting agencies, is lured to shift to more developed European countries but government agencies remain silent, he said.
The migration law prohibits such advertisements.
In the cases of other nearby countries like Romania and Bulgaria, the same situation prevails for Bangladeshi workers, and the markets remain suspended for Bangladeshis.
Shakirul stressed the need for ethical migration and good governance in the migration system to solve the problem.
In 2024, the Croatian authorities issued 12,400 work permits and visas to Bangladeshi workers. Among them, 8,000 never arrived. Almost half of the remaining 4,400 arrived in the country and are working there but the rest of them left the country illegally.
According to the information of the Bangladeshi mission in the Netherlands, nearly 7,000 Bangladeshi are working in the country, mostly in construction, restaurant and food delivery works.
Though working conditions and wages in Croatia are better than many other popular destinations for Bangladeshis, the workers move to more developed European countries illegally from Croatia.
Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies general secretary Ali Haider Chowdhury termed the issue a trend in labour migration.
鈥業f workers get better opportunities in another country, they will move,鈥� he said. 鈥楳igration cost is not an issue here.鈥�
He urged the government to take appropriate measures to stop the illegal move.