Bangladesh plans to begin sending 200,000 workers to Malaysia in phases by the end of September, State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shah Alam said. He said the overall worker deployment process is expected to be completed within the following six months.

The announcement followed a meeting at the Secretariat on Sunday between Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Mohammad Suhada Osman and Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moin Khan. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Shah Alam said the workers would be sent through enlisted companies.

The state minister also said Malaysia would recruit an additional 10,000 Bangladeshi workers at zero cost to the workers. He said this separate process would also begin in phases toward the end of September. Asked whether there had been discussion about a Bangladeshi government letter concerning LNG imports from Malaysia, Shah Alam said the matter was not discussed.