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Ami Probashi, a digital platform that simplifies the process of labour migration from Bangladesh, started life back in 2021.
Aspiring migrants have since accessed an estimated 95 per cent of government services through the mobile app.
Earlier, an individual had to take migration services from the Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET) manually.
But Ami Probashi has smoothed the path of migration after the launch of the app, which is going to include services like visa attestation, health insurance, loan disbursements and remittance collection.
'Ami Probashi' significantly saves time and money of workers in seven to eight steps of the migration process, according to Namir Ahmad Nuri, co-founder and CEO of Ami Probashi Ltd.
In an interview with The Financial Express, he spoke about Ami Probashi's ongoing efforts and plans to make the migration process more accessible.
A worker had to visit different offices and spend extras to get services, he said.
"We've reduced time significantly. For example, enrollment of pre-departure orientation (PDO) and certification now takes only three days. But this simple process used to take around 15 days."
"Earlier, it used to take about two months to complete the entire process regarding migration at the BMET. It now takes two weeks only," added Mr Namir.
Besides, there is no possibility of providing fake certification in sending workers as the information is properly verified on Ami Probashi.
As per the latest data, an estimated 5.5-million people are using this popular platform. Of them, 2.5-million workers are registered with the BMET databank.
Outbound workers are now receiving services like pre-registration, PDO and skills training enrolment and their certificates online.
"It's been six months since we brought the BMET immigration clearance online, so smart cards are being issued within a short period. App users can download cards online."
Using this easy process, anyone can minimise over 80 per cent of the total cost for taking migration-related government services.
"This way, the government is saving millions, thanks to everything being paperless," the Ami Probashi CEO told the FE.
"The company has given Tk 1.40 billion in revenues to the state exchequer this year."
Workers have to go to district employment and manpower offices for fingerprinting, which is time-consuming as there are only 42 such offices across the country.
"We've proposed that the government bring fingerprint at union digital centres aiming to ensure this facility to the doorsteps of the aspirants," said Mr Namir.
Ami Probashi is working to bring visa attestation service. Once this service is included, workers can process their visas themselves.
Currently, visa processing and immigration clearance cost a large sum of money with involvement of third parties and agents.
Another breakthrough is that employers will be able to select workers directly from this portal. So, migration cost will come down substantially in the coming days.
'Ami Probashi' has won popularity with manpower recruiters as over 1,000 agencies now take its expeditious services.
Some recruiters also pick their candidates through this app.
About upcoming products, Mr Namir said they would include health insurance, loan disbursements and remittance collection.
"We aim to connect outbound workers with government services. For this purpose, we want to bring all types of services related to labour migration into this app."
The workers who still rely on brokers and manpower recruiters will soon realise the convenience of processing through the app, according to Mr Namir.
The firm has faced multiple challenges in materialising this venture. "The vicious cycle that has ruled the manpower sector of 40 years cannot be eradicated so easily."
"We're trying to make a difference there. We have been able to achieve a lot and are working towards the goal of bringing more successes in the future."
"Ami Probashi aims to ensure the empowerment of Bangladeshi migrants and democratise the migration process," he told the FE.