Bangladesh

Collective action to improve the rights and legal protection of migrant workers in Bangladesh

Although work against human trafficking has been done for a long time, there is currently more human trafficking and slavery in the world than ever before. According to the UN, globally 50 million people live in modern slavery. The “Collective action to improve the rights and legal protection of migrant workers” project in Bangladesh focuses on promoting the rights of migrant workers and preventing human trafficking. Every year more than 500,000 Bangladeshis migrate for work. Lack of knowledge about their own rights, poverty and violence against women put these migrants in a vulnerable position and at risk of being trafficked. In the project implemented with the local partner OKUP and CAFOD, migrant workers receive information and tools to defend their rights and combat human trafficking and unsafe migration. The project will benefit more than 24,000 migrant workers and their family members in Fadipur, Munshiganj and Narayanganj districts.

With the project:

Migrant workers, especially women and girls, and their communities are given tools to defend their rights and prevent the risks of human trafficking, forced labor and exploitation.
Migrant workers and those responsible, for example lawyers and judicial authorities, have the necessary knowledge and skills to protect the rights of migrant workers.
National and international policy makers are taking steps to safeguard the rights of women and girls in migrant workers and improve their access to justice mechanisms.

What are we doing?

The communities receive training on work-related immigration, human trafficking prevention and their rights.
Migrant workers receive training on their rights before emigrating.
Returning migrant workers who have been victims of a crime receive support for legal proceedings.
Lawyers, judges and decision-makers are trained on the rights of migrant workers and consulted on the development of the system.
The “Access to Justice” report is published annually, where migrant workers, lawyers, judges and decision-makers are consulted. The report highlights grievances and makes development proposals to improve the rights of migrant workers.

What results do we expect?

Long-term result:

Society and communities are able to prevent the exploitation of migrant workers, human trafficking and promote their rights.

Medium-term results:

migrant workers, especially women and girls, have the skills and know-how to defend their rights. They also campaign against high-risk migration, human trafficking, forced labor and exploitation.
Lawyers and judicial authorities gain more information and understanding and protect and promote the rights of migrant workers.
National and international decision-makers act to protect migrant workers’ rights and access to legal systems.

Short term results:

migrant workers have increased understanding and knowledge of their rights. Migrant workers receive legal advice and support if necessary.
Decision-makers and other actors such as lawyers get more information about the rights of migrant workers.
The documents guiding the rights of migrant workers are based on researched information and the migrant workers’ own experiences, and their lessons are shared nationally and internationally.

Consideration of human rights in the project

The project promotes the rights of people in a very vulnerable position, and migrant workers participating in the project are involved in the planning and implementation of the project. Among the participants of the project, priority is given to those who are at particular risk of being marginalized and who belong to ethnic minorities. By influencing the decision-makers, the project aims to change the system as a whole so that the human rights of migrant workers are better taken into account after the project. The inclusion of women and marginalized communities is at the center.

The project will receive development cooperation support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2023-2025