Speakers at a seminar in Dhaka called for taking action against unscrupulous middlemen and recruiting agencies to check abuse and harassment of migrant workers.
They also stressed the need for imparting proper training to workers, raising awareness and ensuring law enforcement in order to protect the rights of migrant workers.
The Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment and Dhaka Divisional Commissioner Office jointly organised the seminar on 'Skills and Awareness for Overseas jobs' at the Shilpakala Academy in the city on Sunday.
Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmad was present as the chief guest, with Dhaka Divisional Commissioner Muhammad Joynul Bari in the chair.
Joint Secretary at the ministry Nasreen Jahan presented the keynote paper.
Upazila chairmen from different districts in Dhaka Division, Deputy Commissioners and Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) also attended the event and shared their views.
Minister Imran Ahmad stressed the need for raising awareness through social media to ensure safe migration.
The ministry has declared war against the fraudulent system, not the brokers, to protect the migrant workers, he said, adding that it is adopting a unified approach to prevent abuse and harassment of workers.
"We have recently imposed a big amount of fines on people and agencies involved in the irregularities in overseas recruitment," Mr Imran said.
Secretary Md Salim Reza called for imparting training to workers with technology so that they become skilled for overseas jobs.
The Technical Training Centres (TTCs) across the country are playing an important role in improving the skills of people intending to go abroad for jobs, he said.
Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) president Benjir Ahmed said his association would take action against those resorting to fraudulent activities.
He also suggested introducing a system for paying migration-related costs through banking channel in order to curb manipulation and influence of middlemen and frauds.
Habibur Rahman, Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Dhaka Range of Police, said brokers and fraudsters deceive people using such clever tactics that police sometimes find it difficult to bring charges against them.
He also suggested raising awareness to protect migrant workers from deception at the hands of frauds.
