Maldives Immigration on Thursday began seeking an agency to conduct pre-departure screening of Bangladeshi migrant workers coming to the Maldives.
“The overall objective of [conducting pre-departure screening] is to strengthen the labour migration process from Bangladesh to the Maldives. The initiative will significantly contribute to streamline the labour migration process and tackle the issue of illegal labour migration between the two countries,” Maldives Immigration said in its call for expression of interest.
Speaking to Public Service Media, Spokesperson at the Maldives Immigration, Hassan Khaleel said “Bangladeshis account for a large portion of the migrant worker population in the Maldives, and that the department is aware that a significant number of them are undocumented.” He said the main task of the agency would be to ensure that immigrant workers coming to the Maldives, come through the proper channels and possess necessary documentation.
The Immigration earlier said it was currently working to compile a registry of illegal migrant workers.