Remitting money from Saudi Arabia remains disproportionately costly for Bangladeshi migrant workers, Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur said, urging closer cooperation between financial institutions in both countries to reduce transfer fees.

Speaking at the Saudi Arabia–Bangladesh Business Summit in Dhaka, Mansur said remittance charges currently range between 6 and 10 percent, a rate he described as a significant burden on workers who send money home to support their families.

He noted that Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia have complementary economic interests, with Bangladesh supplying labour and the Kingdom providing energy and investment, and called for deeper financial collaboration to make remittance channels more affordable and transparent.

The governor also invited Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and private sector investors to explore opportunities in Bangladesh’s infrastructure, manufacturing, and technology sectors. “Despite global shocks, Bangladesh’s economic growth has remained resilient, never falling below 3.5 percent over the past three decades,” he said.

The summit, organised by the Saudi Arabia–Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SABCCI), brought together business and political leaders from both nations. Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, also attending the event, praised Bangladesh’s early success in labour diplomacy but urged stronger emphasis on skill development.

“Only 22 percent of the 2.1 million Bangladeshis working in Saudi Arabia are skilled,” Khosru said, adding that improving workforce quality would boost remittance flows and enhance Bangladesh’s position in the global labour market.