Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury held a meeting with Director General of the OIC Labour Center Azar Bayramov on the sidelines of the 114th International Labour Conference (ILC).

The meeting was held Tuesday at the United Nations office in Geneva, Switzerland, where he called for more OIC support for migrant workers and skills development. 

During the discussion, the labour minister also underscored the massive contribution of millions of Bangladeshi workers in the OIC member states to the economies of both host and home countries.

He urged the OIC Labour Center to step up efforts to ensure safe working environments, social protection and dignity for migrant workers in OIC countries, underscoring the need for more effective mechanisms to protect them. 

The minister said that OIC member states could greatly benefit from enhanced cooperation by exchanging best practices and labour market data. 

He stressed the need for greater coordination among OIC countries to face the growing challenges in the fast-changing global labour market. 

Emphasising on youth employment, the minister said skill development, especially in science, technology and digital economy, is important to meet the future needs of the labour market. 

He called upon the OIC Labour Center to come forward with initiatives on technical assistance, job creation and skills development training for both domestic and migrant Bangladeshi workers. He also assured full cooperation of Bangladesh in training workshops and capacity building programmes organized by the Centre.

In response, OIC Labour Center Director General Azar Bayramov thanked Bangladesh for signing the statute of the OIC Labour Center and called for its early ratification.

He said that the Centre will work for large-scale skills development of Bangladeshi migrant workers in OIC countries and promotion of social protection and safe work environment.

Senior officials from Bangladesh attending the meeting included Labour Secretary Md. Abdur Rahman Tarafdar, Ambassador Nahida Sobhan, Additional Secretary Md. Humayun Kabir, Deputy Secretaries Syed Ehtiza Ahsan and Md. Shamsul Islam.

Source: BSS