Touhid urges Bahrain to reopen visas for Bangladeshi citizens
Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Touhid Hossain has called on the Bahraini government to reopen visa facilities for Bangladeshi nationals, including businesspersons, professionals, and skilled and semi-skilled workers, in a bid to boost labour mobility, trade, and people-to-people engagement between the two nations.
The request came during a bilateral meeting with Bahrain’s Deputy Interior Minister Adel bin Khalifa Al Fadhel on the sidelines of the 21st IISS Manama Dialogue in Bahrain on Saturday, according to a press release issued by the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.
Touhid also urged Bahrain to resume the issuance of family visas for Bangladeshi expatriates residing in the Kingdom to help improve their community welfare and social integration.
In response, Deputy Minister Al Fadhel praised the significant contributions of Bangladeshi workers to Bahrain’s economy and assured that the Bahraini government is actively considering a phased reopening of visa services for Bangladeshis.
During the talks, both sides also explored the possibility of signing an agreement on the transfer of sentenced persons, which would allow convicted nationals to serve their prison terms in their home countries.
Adviser Touhid is currently attending the Manama Dialogue, one of the Middle East’s key security conferences, which brings together ministers, policymakers, and global leaders to discuss regional and international security issues.
Officials noted that the resumption of Bahraini visas could open up new opportunities for Bangladesh’s overseas employment sector, which already sends a significant number of workers to Gulf nations each year. Bahrain had suspended certain visa categories for Bangladeshis several years ago, and Dhaka has been pressing for their reinstatement to restore a major labour and trade corridor.
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