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Trying to make manpower recruitment hassle-free and transparent, the Saudi mission in Dhaka has made a move to eliminate the role of middlemen or brokers as breakthroughs in business ties are within sights.
Saudi Ambassador in Bangladesh Essa Yousef Essa Alduhailan made the observations on the move in an exclusive interview with The Financial Express.
"We have also formulated regulations to punish the recruiting agencies which are involved in irregularities to ensure transparent and easy manpower recruitment," he mentions.
Licence of a recruitment agency will be cancelled if involved in any kind of malpractice, says the ambassador on a note of caution.
Not a single extra penny has to be taken by the embassy for the recruitment, Mr Alduhailan adds.
Saudi Arabia is the biggest recruiter of Bangladeshi manpower with more than 2.3 million labourers employed over there in different sectors.
Responding to a question he says Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia are likely to sign several MoUs, including on customs cooperation and extradition of convicts, during the Saudi foreign minister's visit. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on March 16.
Both sides are working on to ensure the signing of several memorandums of understanding and "we are hopeful that these will be signed," says the envoy.
The first-ever political consultation between the two countries will also be held during the upcoming tour.
The envoy says that Saudi Arabia is also considering a proposal from Bangladesh to establish an exclusive economic zone for Saudi investors in Mirsarai under Chittagong.
Terming the ties between the two countries warm the Saudi envoy observes that the relations are getting stronger by the day.
But Mr Alduhailan makes it clear that he is not satisfied with the existing volume of bilateral trade as it is much lower than original potential. Both the countries need to work on this as there are huge opportunities for both sides. Bangladeshis can now invest in Saudi Arabia as massive reform was made by the government recently to lure foreign investment.
A good number of Bangladeshis have already invested in Saudi Arabia, the envoy says, adding that sectors like construction, healthcare, real estate, tourism can be lucrative for Bangladeshi investors. He also mentions the eagerness of the Saudi companies to invest in Bangladesh.
"Saudi companies like the Engineering Dimensions, a Saudi Arabian enterprise, have confirmed a US$1.8 billion investment in Bangladesh. The Saudi ACWA Power has already announced to invest US$600 million to build 700MW power plant and proposed total US$3.5 billion dollars in Bangladesh and the Saudi Red Sea Gateway Terminal wants to invest US$1.2 billion in Bangladesh," he says.
Saudi companies are also reviewing opportunities to invest in the construction of rail links connecting Dhaka and the Payra port, and in a project for the development of Cox's Bazar as an international tourism hub.
The envoy, however, stressed the need for enhancing sea and air connectivity between the two countries to explore the huge potential of the bilateral trade.
Direct shipping link between Jeddah and Chittagong and increasing flights between the two countries are under discussion, he mentions.
Mr Alduhailan notes that, presently, Saudi's airlines cannot carry passengers to full capacity due to regulations of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh.
"If full capacity can be ensured, the flight cost will be reduced, resulting in lower migration cost for the Bangladeshi workers," he says, hoping that the issue would be resolved soon.
The envoy mentions both the countries are working together on various issues, including security cooperation, to ensure common interest for the two peoples.