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Published : 08 May 2023, 03:35 PM
Expatriates’ Welfare Minister Imran Ahmad has said the Expatriates’ Welfare Bank will come up with a policy to rehabilitate Bangladeshi evacuees from Sudan amid fighting between the army and a paramilitary force.
Upon greeting them at the airport on Monday, he said: “You will be able to return once things calm down in Sudan. If we find an alternative country for you to travel to, we’ll make arrangements accordingly.”
“The Expatriates’ Welfare Bank is there for your rehabilitation and once we set a policy, you’ll be able to receive aid from there.”
Almost half of the 1,500 expatriates residing in Sudan wish to return to Bangladesh due to the ongoing conflict. The first group of evacuees consisting of 136 individuals returned to the country via Jeddah in Saudi Arabia on Monday morning.
The Expatriates’ Welfare Board handed over Tk 3,000 to each of them while the International Organization for Migration gave them Tk 2,000 each, along with food.
Ahmad said the ministry allocated $200,000 for the return of Bangladeshis stranded in the Northeast African country.
“You can rest assured that we’ll bring the rest of you over very soon. Another jet will arrive on May 9 or 10. We’re trying to do this as soon as possible. About 250 of you were supposed to arrive today, but only 136 actually did. So it’s tough to give a specific number or date.”
Battles between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since mid-April have killed hundreds of people and wounded thousands of others, disrupted aid supplies and sent 100,000 refugees fleeing abroad, turning parts of the Sudanese capital Khartoum into war zones and derailed an internationally backed plan to usher in civilian rule following years of unrest and uprisings.
As the conflict raged on, many countries, including Bangladesh, moved to bring back their citizens to safety from Sudan.
More than 680 of the 1,500 Bangladeshis in Sudan left Khartoum for Port Sudan for evacuation under arrangements by the Bangladesh Embassy on May 2. They have been kept temporarily at a local madrasa as evacuation efforts are underway.
Initially, the Bangladeshi nationals were supposed to take a ship from Sudan Port to Jeddah. Later, three flights of the Royal Saudi Air Force took a total of 136 Bangladeshis to Jeddah with nationals from other countries.
The embassy added that women, children, and the sick were prioritised among the evacuees who left Sudan in the first phase.
“They [evacuees] have lost everything. But before that, they delivered much to the country. They arrived empty handed. We’re here to find out how they can be assisted.”
“The IOM is helping them everywhere. They’re being provided financial assistance through the Wage Earners’ Welfare Board to help them hold up for some days,” Ahmad said.
On complaints that the Bangladesh Embassy in Sudan could not properly help out the expatriates, he said: “Those at our embassy there are not having things easy. You people here can sense it a bit. Don’t keep looking for fault in others. This is an undesirable situation.”
Ahmad also asked the returnees to register their name and address to receive assistance in future.
