Bangladesh will seek to reopen Malaysia’s labour market for its workers—which has been suspended since 2024—during Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s maiden tour to the Southeast Asian country. 

‘The Prime Minister will leave Dhaka for Kuala Lumpur on Sunday for a two-day bilateral visit to Malaysia, to be followed by a four-day visit to China from 23 July,’ Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam told a curtain-raiser press conference on the PM’s back-to-back official visits to Malaysia and China at his Segun Bagicha office in the city on Saturday.

The Foreign Secretary said that the PM would request his counterpart to recruit more Bangladeshis to Malaysia, a major destination for Bangladeshi migrant workers.

He added that the Prime Minister’s visit to China would deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.

Furthermore, Bangladesh will also seek the cooperation of Malaysia and other Southeast Asian nations in resolving the Rohingya crisis.

During the visit, Dhaka and Beijing are likely to sign 13 memoranda of understanding, two agreements, an action plan, and a protocol.

Comprehensive water management incorporating issues relating to transboundary rivers, including the Teesta, Brahmaputra, and Padma, will be discussed during the visit, the Secretary said.