The foreign relations share the Bangladeshi government's policies in its external relations with the international community. The country pursues a moderate foreign policy that places heavy reliance on multinational diplomacy, especially at the United Nations and World Trade Organization (WTO). Since independence in 1971, the country has stressed its principle of "Friendship towards all, malice towards none" in dictating its diplomacy. As a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, Bangladesh has tended to not take sides with major powers. Since the end of the Cold War, the country has pursued better relations with regional neighbours.
Foreign workers or guest workers are people who work in a country other than one of which they are a citizen. Some foreign workers use a guest worker program in a country with more preferred job prospects than in their home country. Guest workers are often either sent or invited to work outside their home country or have acquired a job before leaving their home country, whereas migrant workers often leave their home country without a specific job in prospect.
A migrant worker is a person who migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work.
An overseas Filipino is a person of full or partial Filipino origin—i.e., people who trace back their ancestry to the Philippines but living or residing outside the country. This term generally applies to both people of Filipino ancestry and citizens abroad. As of 2019, there were over 12 million Filipinos overseas.
A remittance is a non-commercial transfer of money by a foreign worker, a member of a diaspora community, or a citizen with familial ties abroad, for household income in their home country or homeland. Money sent home by migrants competes with international aid as one of the largest financial inflows to developing countries. Workers' remittances are a significant part of international capital flows, especially with regard to labor-exporting countries.
Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) is a term often used to refer to Filipino migrant workers, people with Filipino citizenship who reside in another country for a limited period of employment.
Indonesians in Hong Kong, numbering 102,100, form the second-largest ethnic minority group in the territory, behind Filipinos. Most Indonesians coming to Hong Kong today are those who arrive under limited-term contracts for employment as foreign domestic helpers. The Hong Kong Immigration Department allows the Indonesian consulate to force Indonesian domestic helpers to use employment agencies. Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong comprise 2.4% of all overseas Indonesian workers.
Filipinos in Kuwait are either migrants from or descendants of the Philippines living in Kuwait. As of 2020, there are roughly 241,000 of these Filipinos in Kuwait. Most people in the Filipino community are migrant workers, and approximately 60% of Filipinos in Kuwait are employed as domestic workers.
The Bangladeshi Malaysians consists of people of full or partial Bangladeshi descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. Bangladeshis in Malaysia form a large proportion of Malaysia's foreign labour force. Their population was estimated to total 221,000 persons, roughly one-eighth of all the foreign workers in Malaysia as of 2017. In early 2016, a controversial agreement by Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was conjured to send a total of 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers in stages for 3 years to Malaysia. This decision was met with criticism from both individuals in government and the general Malaysian public and was quickly revoked.
Indonesia is a source, transit, and destination country for women, children, and men trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. The greatest threat of trafficking facing Indonesian men and women is that posed by conditions of forced labor and debt bondage in more developed Asian countries and the Middle East.
The Bangladeshi diaspora consists of people of Bangladeshi descent who have immigrated to or were born in another country. First-generation migrants may have moved abroad from Bangladesh for various reasons including better living conditions, to escape poverty, to support their financial condition, or to send money back to families there. With a total of thirteen million Bangladeshis living abroad, the country has ranked fourth among the top 20 countries of origin for international migrants. Annual remittances received in Bangladesh were $13.4 million in 2017.
Bangladesh is a source and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. A significant share of Bangladesh's trafficking victims are men recruited for work overseas with fraudulent employment offers who are subsequently exploited under conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. It also includes the trafficking of children – both boys and girls – within Bangladesh for commercial sexual exploitation, bonded labor, and forced labor. Some children are sold into bondage by their parents, while others are induced into labor or commercial sexual exploitation through fraud and physical coercion. Women and children from Bangladesh are also trafficked to India for commercial sexual exploitation.
The Philippine Labor Migration Policy of the Philippine government allows and encourages emigration. The Department of Foreign Affairs, which is one of the government's arms of emigration, grants Filipinos passports that allow entry to foreign countries. The Philippine government enacted the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995 in order to "institute the policies of overseas employment and establish a higher standard of protection and promotion of the welfare of migrant workers and their families and overseas Filipinos in distress."
The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is an agency of the Government of the Philippines responsible for opening the benefits of the overseas employment program of the Philippines. It is the main government agency assigned to monitor and supervise overseas recruitment and manning agencies in the Philippines. The POEA's office is located at EDSA corner Ortigas Avenue, Mandaluyong, Philippines.
Remittance has become a major contributor to the Bangladeshi economy. As the emigrant workers from Bangladesh gradually increased over the years, the amount of annual remittance to the country significantly rose. According to World Bank, Bangladesh is now one of the largest recipients of remittance with almost $15.3 billion in 2018. It was third highest recipient of remittance in South Asia in 2018 A survey on the remittance usage conducted by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (2013) shows that 32.81% and 32.82% of the remittances are used for food and non-food expenditure respectively. On the other hand, 18.84% of remittances are used for durable and other expenses including 17.39% for utilized in the purchase of land. In case of investment and savings, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics revealed that 33.45% of remittances goes to investment and 13.74% of remittances goes to savings.
Bangladesh–Qatar relations refer to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Qatar. Both countries are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
Bangladesh–Iraq relations refer to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Iraq.
Bangladesh–Kuwait relations refer to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Kuwait.
Bangladesh–Libya relations refer to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Libya.
A B M Altaf Hossain is a Bangladeshi lawyer and former additional judge on the High Court Division of Bangladesh Supreme Court. Hossain is a former Deputy Attorney General of Bangladesh.
