The Republic of Korea has decided to resume the entry of Bangladeshi expatriate workers, suspended since June last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Lee Jang-keun informed the decision to Minister of Expatriate’s Welfare and Overseas Employment Imran Ahmed at a meeting at the latter’s office on Tuesday.
Ambassador Lee also requested the Bangladesh government to take necessary steps to ensure that the workers are fully vaccinated before coming to Korea.
He also asked the government to ensure workers are also Covid negative before and during their travel.
Appreciating the decision of the Korean Government, Minister Imran Ahmed assured Ambassador Lee of full cooperation for a smooth and successful resumption of Bangladeshi workers’ entry and re-entry into Korea.
Korean Government has been taking migrant workers from 16 countries including Bangladesh since 2004 under the Employment Permit System (EPS).
Some 2,000 – 3,000 Bangladeshi workers have been benefited annually under this programme, a spokesperson of the Embassy said.
Currently, the number of Bangladeshi workers staying in Korea under this system is around 7,500 which was over 10,000 before the pandemic.