Three European countries have repatriated 35 Bangladeshis. Of them, 19 returned from Italy, 10 from Greece and six from Cyprus.
Immigration police and airport sources said the 35 Bangladeshis arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 8:15 am today, Friday, on a chartered special flight (PVG 9445).
With support from Civil Aviation Security and the Expatriate Welfare Desk at the airport, BRAC’s Migration Programme provided the returnees with emergency assistance, counselling and financial support to help them reach their respective homes.
Representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European Union were also present there at the time.
Asked about the return of the 35 Bangladeshis, Shariful Hasan, associate director of BRAC Migration Programme and the BRAC Youth Platform, told Prothom Alo that 19 Bangladeshis from Italy, 10 from Greece and six from Cyprus returned on a special flight.
All of them received assistance at the airport through the Prottasha-2 project, jointly funded by the European Union and BRAC. They will later receive counselling and training, followed by financial assistance, he said.
In 2017, the Bangladesh government signed standard operating procedure (SOP) agreements with European countries to facilitate the repatriation of undocumented or irregular Bangladeshis from Europe.
Since then, around 5,000 Bangladeshis have returned under the agreements. The largest numbers have returned from Cyprus, Italy, Romania and France.
Shariful Hasan said that over the past few years, the largest numbers of returnees from Europe had come from Italy, Greece and Germany. Those who return receive emergency assistance and counselling at the airport, followed by financial support to help them rebuild their lives.
At the same time, awareness campaigns are being conducted across the country to discourage people from taking risks to reach Europe. The government has also stepped up initiatives to facilitate the legal recruitment of workers from Bangladesh by European countries, he added.