Japan keen to recruit workers from Bangladesh

Japan, one of Asia’s developed countries, is experiencing a rapid increase in its elderly population. This has created a major shortage of working age people across its industrial sectors. The growing number of elderly people and pensioners has also created a crisis in their care. Against this backdrop, Japan is focusing on recruiting foreign workers to address the shortages. Bangladesh has emerged as a key potential source of workers. The issue is coming into focus ahead of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s upcoming visit to Japan.

Several Japanese media outlets have published prominent reports on the recruitment of workers from Bangladesh.

Japan is fully prepared to accept Bangladeshi workers and develop their skills from April 1 next year under a new agreement signed with the BNP government. Known as the Memorandum of Cooperation on Employment for Skill Development, the agreement will remain in effect for five years and will automatically be extended for another five years thereafter.

Japanese media outlets have given considerable attention to the agreement. Japan is currently facing a major shortage of nurses and caregivers. Several media outlets, including Nasshel 2 Days, believe recruiting workers from Bangladesh would be a reasonable way to address the shortage.

Statistics from Japan’s Statistics Bureau and Cabinet Office for 2025 and 2026 show that 36.2 million of the country’s 122.7 million people are aged 65 or older. The Japanese government is concerned about providing health care and daily assistance to this large elderly population. To address the problem, the government is giving serious consideration to recruiting nurses and caregivers from abroad. These two sectors offer considerable potential for Bangladesh to export its workforce to Japan. Experts believe the prime minister’s visit could provide an opportunity to discuss the matter.

Dr. Sahab Enam Khan, a professor in the Department of International Relations at Jahangirnagar University and executive director of the Bangladesh Center for Indo-Pacific Affairs (BCIPA), told Agamir Somoy, “Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s visit to Japan will play an important role in strengthening relations and increasing cooperation between the two countries. Japan can be an important source of foreign currency earnings for us, not just a development partner.”

“Japan has a high life expectancy. The number of elderly people there is increasing day by day. Japan is struggling to provide care for these elderly people. The country wants to recruit nurses and caregivers from abroad for this sector. Bangladesh can take advantage of this opportunity,” Professor Khan added.

According to data from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), the country needed 2.15 million caregivers in 2022. The demand increased to 2.4 million in 2026 and is projected to reach 2.72 million by 2040.

Stressing that the issue should be included in the prime minister’s itinerary for Japan, Professor Sahab Enam Khan said, “We should ask the Japanese government to recruit our vast workforce in these sectors after providing them with proper training.”

Japan also faces a significant shortage of working age people in other industrial sectors. A 2024 Reuters report cited a forecast by the Recruit Works Institute that Japan could face a potential labor shortage of approximately 3.4 million workers by 2030 and around 11 million by 2040.

Meanwhile, the 2040 employment projections by the Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training (JILPT), a government research institute specializing in labor policy, indicate that the number of employed people could decline from 67.24 million in 2022 to approximately 57.68 million in 2040 if economic growth and measures to increase labor market participation do not improve. This represents a decline of approximately 9.56 million employed people. However, this decline could be largely prevented by promoting economic growth and increasing labor market participation.

According to the Bangladesh Embassy in Tokyo, 40,045 Bangladeshis were living in Japan as of June 2025. A large proportion initially arrived as students and later settled there permanently. Many Bangladeshis are engaged in small businesses as well as the service and manufacturing sectors. In addition, a significant number of Bangladeshis are traveling to Japan on Technical Intern, Specified Skilled Worker and Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visas.

Rabiul Alam, secretary general of the Japan Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JBCCI), told Agamir Somoy, “There is a major opportunity to send skilled workers to Japan. In particular, there is demand for software engineers, caregivers and nurses. Japan needs caregivers and nurses because it has a large elderly population. Bangladesh can take advantage of this opportunity.”

However, workers must develop their professional skills and learn Japanese. A nurse or caregiver must have more than professional skills. They must also be able to communicate in Japanese. Arrangements for language and professional training need to be established in Bangladesh before workers leave the country.

Identifying language proficiency as a challenge, the JBCCI secretary general said, “The lack of language proficiency is a major obstacle. However, knowing the language alone is not enough. Workers must also have professional skills. Bangladesh has to compete with Vietnam, Cambodia, Nepal and other countries to enter the Japanese labor market. Many workers from these countries are already working in Japan. Therefore, we need to improve our workers’ skills and preparedness.”

“Bangladesh’s large population is an asset. If we can transform this workforce into skilled human resources, we will gain greater economic benefits. Sending skilled workers instead of unskilled laborers can increase their earnings and the country’s potential to earn foreign currency. Developing skilled workers is therefore an important long term investment,” Rabiul Alam added.

At the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is scheduled to visit Japan on October 28 for a four day state visit. Discussions during the visit will cover memorandums of understanding on various issues, including agriculture, fisheries, human resource development and skills enhancement, civil aviation, marine environmental conservation and modernization of local government systems. There are discussions that four of the eight proposed agreements may be signed.