Overseas job prospect for Bangladeshi seafarers on wane

false documents

It is getting extremely difficult for Bangladeshi seafarers to manage jobs in foreign ships due to widespread use of false documents, officials of the foreign ministry have said. Quite a few countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and India, have already expressed their reluctance to provide Bangladeshi seafarers with jobs in their ships, they said.   
These countries are also unwilling to issue visas for the Bangladeshi seafarers to join different flag carriers, they added. A meeting was held yesterday at the foreign ministry to discuss the issue, which, according to the officials, is not only tarnishing the image of the country but also diminishing the job prospects of prospective seafarers.
Foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali, shipping minister Shahjahan Khan and officials from concerned ministries and departments attended the meeting. “At the meeting, the shipping ministry has been asked to act against the use of forged documents,” said an official who attended the meeting.
The official cited several examples where Bangladeshi seafarers disappeared from ships carrying flags of different countries. Last year, seven Bangladeshis got jobs in a Singaporean ship and all of them disappeared when the ship anchored at a port of the United States. The same year, 17 other Bangladeshis disappeared from a Saudi flag carrier as it docked at a Saudi port.
The Saudi government has stopped recruiting Bangladeshis in their ships and the government of Bangladesh has duly been informed of the decision, the sources said.
Hong Kong detected 52 false documents belonging to Bangladeshi seafarers and made a complaint to the International Maritime Organisation. The use of false documents by Bangladeshi crew appeared to be enough for the United Arab Emirates to announce that it will not issue visas to them, they said.  Iran also found 50 forged documents provided by Bangladeshi seafarers.
In the latest development, 18 Bangladeshi cadets went to Mumbai in June this year to get jobs in a ship with 72-hour visas. But, the company cheated them and took away all of their money. Subsequently, they became illegal after 72 hours and landed in jail. India also complained on security ground, posing question as to why Bangladesh sent its seafarers without confirming their jobs.
A Bangladesh national became the captain of a Cambodian ship. Later, the company that owns the ship asked for his documents only to find out that all of his documents were forged.
All these instances are more than enough to embarrass Bangladesh and all steps should be taken to stop the use of false documents, said the officials.
In Bangladesh, they said, it is very easy to obtain competency certificates or seaman identity cards. Even non-technical people like ship cleaners or cooks can manage these documents, they added.
The officials also said that Bangladeshi ships cannot provide jobs for the all the seafarers who come out of the marine academies. There are only four ships in government sector and 27 in private sector and it’s not possible to accommodate or train the fresh seafarers in these ships, they said.
There are many jobs available for the seafarers across the globe, said the officials, adding that if the issue relating forged documents can be addressed, there are ample well-paid jobs for Bangladeshi seafarers to grab.

Overseas job prospect for Bangladeshi seafarers on wane

false documents

It is getting extremely difficult for Bangladeshi seafarers to manage jobs in foreign ships due to widespread use of false documents, officials of the foreign ministry have said. Quite a few countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and India, have already expressed their reluctance to provide Bangladeshi seafarers with jobs in their ships, they said. These countries are also unwilling to issue visas for the Bangladeshi seafarers to join different flag carriers, they added. A meeting was held yesterday at the foreign ministry to discuss the issue, which, according to the officials, is not only tarnishing the image of the country but also diminishing the job prospects of prospective seafarers. Foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali, shipping minister Shahjahan Khan and officials from concerned ministries and departments attended the meeting. At the meeting, the shipping ministry has been asked to act against the use of forged documents, said an official who attended the meeting. The official cited several examples where Bangladeshi seafarers disappeared from ships carrying flags of different countries. Last year, seven Bangladeshis got jobs in a Singaporean ship and all of them disappeared when the ship anchored at a port of the United States. The same year, 17 other Bangladeshis disappeared from a Saudi flag carrier as it docked at a Saudi port. The Saudi government has stopped recruiting Bangladeshis in their ships and the government of Bangladesh has duly been informed of the decision, the sources said. Hong Kong detected 52 false documents belonging to Bangladeshi seafarers and made a complaint to the International Maritime Organisation. The use of false documents by Bangladeshi crew appeared to be enough for the United Arab Emirates to announce that it will not issue visas to them, they said. Iran also found 50 forged documents provided by Bangladeshi seafarers. In the latest development, 18 Bangladeshi cadets went to Mumbai in June this year to get jobs in a ship with 72-hour visas. But, the company cheated them and took away all of their money. Subsequently, they became illegal after 72 hours and landed in jail. India also complained on security ground, posing question as to why Bangladesh sent its seafarers without confirming their jobs. A Bangladesh national became the captain of a Cambodian ship. Later, the company that owns the ship asked for his documents only to find out that all of his documents were forged. All these instances are more than enough to embarrass Bangladesh and all steps should be taken to stop the use of false documents, said the officials. In Bangladesh, they said, it is very easy to obtain competency certificates or seaman identity cards. Even non-technical people like ship cleaners or cooks can manage these documents, they added. The officials also said that Bangladeshi ships cannot provide jobs for the all the seafarers who come out of the marine academies. There are only four ships in government sector and 27 in private sector and its not possible to accommodate or train the fresh seafarers in these ships, they said. There are many jobs available for the seafarers across the globe, said the officials, adding that if the issue relating forged documents can be addressed, there are ample well-paid jobs for Bangladeshi seafarers to grab.