The widely talked about Expatriate Bank is set to launch its operation from Wednesday with Taka 100 crore as paid up capital in a mission to finance intending migrant workers of the country and ensure safe transaction of their remittances. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the bank Expatriate Welfare Bhaban at Eskatan area in line with her 2008 election pledges to promote manpower export and benefit the migrant workers.
The specialized bank is being opened coinciding with the fourth Ministerial-level consultation meeting of the Colombo Process, a forum of 11 worker exporting Asian countries, in Dhaka. Officials said the formal launching of the specialized bank would be marked by offering loans to two women and a man, intending to go abroad for job.
“We expect the Expatriate Bank to benefit about 76 lakh Bangladeshi expatriate workers currently staying in some 100 foreign countries around the globe,” Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Secretary Dr Zafar Ahmed Khan told BSS.
He said the bank was being established initially with a paid up capital of Taka 100 crore, of which Taka 95 crore came from Expatriate Welfare Fund and rest Taka five crore from the government exchequer.
There is a provision to increase the fund of the bank up to Taka 600 crore as the paid up capital not adequate considering expatriates’ contribution in the national economy as well as the huge size of overseas workers, he added. The expatriate welfare secretary, who is also the chairman of board of directors of the bank, said they would open branches of the bank at all major Bangladesh manpower recipient countries within next six months. “We will open more than one branch in the countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE and Malaysia where large number of Bangladeshi labours are working,” he said.
The bank, marked as one of the major success of the present government in ensuring welfare of the expatriates, will provide loans to the intending overseas workers on the basis of mortgage against job. After starting function of the bank, none would need to sell or mortgage their homes, lands and assets to go abroad for jobs, Dr Zafar said.
Besides, the expatriate bank will provide various facilities to the Bangladeshis, presently employed in the foreign lands, in a package including loans.
“They would be brought under a safety circle through this bank so that none of them are deceived abroad,” he said, adding, “The bank will help channeling remittance in a single but safe way to stop all possible means of deceiving the expatriate workers.”
Moreover, ex-expatriate workers could take loan from the bank to start their new business in the country after coming back from overseas, which will help sustaining the economic solvency of the expatriate workers.
On May 24 last year, the government in a cabinet meeting approved the draft of the Expatriate Welfare Bank Act-2010 with an objective to provide financial assistance for the people intending to go abroad for jobs. Later on February 7 this year, Dr Jafar Ahmed Khan was appointed as chairman of the board of directors of Expatriate Welfare Bank.

News: The Independent/ Bangladesh/ 19-Apr-2011