Editorial
Clouds on remittance horizon
Govt needs to have contingency measures in place
Remittances have long been a principal element of the Bangladesh economy, but in the last two years, especially, with the sky-rocketing in the price of essentials due to global commodity price rise, it has been the remittances sent back by overseas Bangladeshis that have kept the economy afloat and have made the difference for countless struggling families, especially rural ones.
It is therefore critical that the government focus on remittance earnings as a bulwark of the economy, and also have in place contingency measures in case there is a significant downturn in remittance earnings, as statistics and analysts indicate may well be the case in the near future.
Remittance earnings are still strong, but the rate of growth at which new job opportunities are being created is plummeting, to say nothing of the jobs that are now starting to be lost. We have already started to see migrant workers returning due to job losses.
The government needs to focus on preserving jobs and opening up new markets. While job growth has come down in countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Malaysia, job opportunities are actually rising in countries such as Oman and Qatar. We need to aggressively tap these new markets for our labour.
More critically, the government needs to take account of the fact that fewer job opportunities overseas and returning migrants means the need for greater job opportunities inside the country.
With the global economy in turmoil, it is clear that it is a risky proposition to continue to have to rely on these earnings as a way to find employment and to keep the economy above water. It leaves us extremely vulnerable to events outside the government's control and no government can relish that prospect.
Not only have overseas jobs been a boon to the economy, but they have provided a necessary safety valve for society by finding jobs and opportunities for millions of young men and women who would otherwise crowd the local job market. In the absence of this, the strains on local resources will grow, demand for jobs will be fiercer, and salaries will be kept low.
Job creation thus must be a significant focus of the government to ensure that if there is an unavoidable downturn in the transnational labour market that this does not have a cataclysmic impact on the local economy and society.
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