In a landmark development for overseas employment, more than 750,000 Bangladeshi workers travelled to Saudi Arabia in 2025 in search of better livelihoods, marking the highest number ever sent to a single country in a single year, according to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).
Speaking to the media on Friday, 2 January, BMET’s Additional Director General, Ashraf Hossain, said, “Last year, over 750,000 Bangladeshi workers were deployed to Saudi Arabia. This is the first time in history that Bangladesh has sent such a large number of workers to a single country within a year.”
BMET data shows that a total of more than 1.1 million Bangladeshi workers went abroad in 2025. Of these, over two-thirds chose Saudi Arabia as their destination, highlighting the kingdom’s continuing appeal as a hub for skilled and semi-skilled labour.
Currently, approximately 3.5 million Bangladeshis reside and work in Saudi Arabia. Since the 1970s, Bangladeshis have been contributing to the kingdom’s workforce and now form the largest expatriate community in the country. They send over USD 5 billion in remittances back to Bangladesh annually, playing a crucial role in the nation’s economy.
The latest statistics also reveal a 16% increase in the number of Bangladeshi workers sent to Saudi Arabia compared to 2024, when around 628,000 workers went abroad to the kingdom. The following table summarises the trends over the past two years:
| Year | Bangladeshi Workers to Saudi Arabia | Annual Growth Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 628,000 | – |
| 2025 | 750,000 | +16% |
Officials noted that in recent years, particular emphasis has been placed on deploying skilled workers to Saudi Arabia. The trend accelerated following the launch of Saudi Arabia’s “Skill Verification Programme” in Bangladesh in 2023, under which workers’ professional competencies are evaluated before deployment.
In October 2025, Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia signed a new employment agreement aimed at strengthening worker protection, wage payment mechanisms, welfare provisions, and healthcare access. The agreement also opens up fresh opportunities in Saudi Arabia’s construction sector and Vision 2030 projects, potentially creating around 300,000 new jobs for Bangladeshi workers in 2026.
This milestone not only underscores Bangladesh’s growing role in global labour markets but also highlights the deepening bilateral workforce ties with Saudi Arabia, which remain a vital source of employment and remittances for the country.