Learning Arabic language is necessary to increase remittance from the Middle East
Arafat Rahman
Arabic is a foreign language to us. One of the most important languages in the world.
Arabic is the mother tongue of about 28 countries in the world. 250 million people use Arabic as a second language. Due to the great importance of this language, the General Assembly recognized Arabic as an official language in 1973. UNESCO first designated December 18 as Arabic Language Day in 2012. In 2013, the UNESCO Advisory Council decided to celebrate this day worldwide to highlight Arabic culture. Arabic is the official language of numerous international organizations including the African Union and OIC. Not only that, as a (Trade Language) business language, this language adorns the packaging of almost every product in non-Arab countries. The quality of the product and advertisements written in Arabic can be seen on the packets of 5-taira biscuits in our country. This easily shows us the dignity, importance of the Arabic language and the need to learn this language.
Arabic is practiced in almost all countries of the world, including Bangladesh. Non-Muslims practice Arabic for business purposes or to learn about Islam. And Muslims learn Arabic for religion and business. Especially the people of Bangladesh give importance to the Arabic language for economic reasons in addition to religious reasons. One of the strengths of the Bangladesh economy is remittances, and the majority of these remittances come from the Arab world. According to a World Bank report, in 2020, all residents sent 21.8 billion US dollars in remittances to Bangladesh. 73% of this large number of remittances come from (GCC) Countries, i.e. the Middle East. The Bangladesh government will take more initiatives to establish a leading position in this huge labor market of the Middle East and enrich it further.
Every year, numerous people from Bangladesh migrate to the Arab world for work in the pursuit of livelihood. However, they have no prior relationship with the Arabic language. Since they are not professionally proficient in the Arabic language, they are deprived of proper salary allowances and various facilities. This huge labor force is not getting proper status because it is not proficient in the Arabic language. Eminent researcher Dr. Md. Abu Bakr Siddique said, “Once upon a time, there was no problem in terms of work even if there was no language skills, but now foreign companies are giving priority to the workforce who know Arabic. Like India, China, Japan, Cambodia and Malaysia, if the workforce going abroad could be sent with language skills through government and private initiatives, then our position in Arabic-speaking countries would be stronger and more solid and the country would earn more foreign currency.”
In view of all these considerations, it is necessary to learn Arabic in order to create skilled and competent manpower for the sake of national development.
Former Economic Counselor and Minister of Bangladesh Embassy in Saudi Arabia Dr. Mohammad Abul Hasan mentioned in his seminar article titled “Arabic language education is essential to increase employment in the Middle East and increase the country’s remittance flow”, we learn Arabic for religious reasons, but Filipinos, Chinese, Sri Lankans and Indians learn Arabic for worldly reasons. I have heard the Chinese Ambassador and Sri Lankan Ambassador in Riyadh speak in full Arabic. I have met Bangladeshi government officials such as: Hajj Counselor, Jeddah, Defense Attaché, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Deputy Chief of Mission who are fluent in Arabic. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh is active in teaching and learning this language. In 1997, the late Shahidul Alam started a course to teach Arabic and Persian at the BCS Administration Academy, which was in operation until 2003. The Technical and Vocational Education Department of the Organization of Islamic Countries’ IUT-Islamic University of Technology is ready to provide training in Arabic. We can easily start online training through the University of YC. Their official languages are Arabic and Persian. Online Arabic language training courses can be started quickly to facilitate the job opportunities of our doctors, nurses, and medical technologists in the Arab world. I applaud the current government for including Arabic in the general education curriculum. Along with that, I believe that if effective steps are taken to make this practical Arabic education a reality, Bangladesh will take a step forward socially and economically.
The importance of the Arabic language in earning remittances in the country is undeniable because 80 percent of the country’s foreign remittances come from Arabic-speaking countries. Considering this economic importance, a Hindu-majority country like India officially sponsors the Arabic language. It makes them proficient in Arabic to export manpower to the Arab world. Similarly, Pakistan also trains its citizens in Arabic. However, due to our neglect of the Arabic language, most Bengalis are seen doing low-level work in Saudi Arabia. Due to their incompetence in Arabic, they are treated as very low-level workers. On the other hand, due to their proficiency in Arabic, workers from India and Pakistan are seen getting appointed to various official jobs. A survey shows that only 300 Danish citizens working in Saudi Arabia send more remittances than the thousands of Bangladeshis who send from Saudi Arabia.
While doing fieldwork for the purpose of doing a master’s degree in teaching Arabic to non-Arabs at King Saud University in Saudi Arabia, I saw in practice the problem faced by Bangladeshi businessmen in doing small businesses, that Bangladeshis open small grocery stores or engage in various types of small businesses, so to run their business, they have to hire a Sudanese or an Egyptian. They have to pay a huge amount of money to carry out daily correspondence or communication or legal work. If that Bengali knew Arabic well, then this huge amount of money would not have been wasted.
Therefore, it is necessary to learn practical Arabic for good jobs or business in the Arab world. Unfortunately, all the initiatives that have been taken in teaching this language are inadequate.
