Why did Malaysia agree to cap Bangladeshi worker recruitment at 25 agencies?

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Malaysia Agreed to Cap Bangladeshi Worker Recruitment at 25 Agencies to Prevent Past Exploitation

Malaysia and Bangladesh jointly agreed to limit the number of approved agencies for recruiting Bangladeshi workers to 25. This decision was reached during a meeting between the Bangladeshi prime minister and Malaysian ministers, with Malaysia increasing its quota from a previous limit of 10 to the current 25. The Human Resources Minister stated that the source country, Bangladesh, has the prerogative to determine the number of agencies it approves for recruitment.
Joint Agreement on Agency Cap

The agreement to cap recruitment agencies at 25 was a mutual decision between Dhaka and Putrajaya. This limit was confirmed during discussions involving the Bangladeshi prime minister and Malaysian ministers, signifying a coordinated approach to managing the recruitment process for Bangladeshi workers entering Malaysia.
Vetting Process for Agency Selection

A management team undertook a rigorous vetting process, reviewing over 1,500 agencies. The selection of the final 25 agencies was based on a predefined set of criteria that had been agreed upon by both Malaysia and Bangladesh. This systematic approach aimed to ensure that only qualified and compliant agencies were approved.
Preventing Recurrence of Past Issues

A primary reason for implementing this cap was to prevent a repetition of the situation in 2008. At that time, the unfettered involvement of numerous recruitment agencies led to over 100,000 Bangladeshi workers being stranded in Malaysia, indicating systemic issues with the recruitment framework.
Malaysia's Increased Quota Compared to Other Nations

While Malaysia has set its recruitment agency limit at 25, the Human Resources Minister highlighted that other nations have implemented even stricter caps. For instance, Singapore has reduced its approved agencies to six from a previous 14, and Hong Kong has fewer than ten. This comparison suggests a broader trend among destination countries to streamline and control the recruitment of foreign labour.

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Why did Malaysia agree to cap Bangladeshi worker recruitment at 25 agencies?

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