Japan’s growing demand for foreign workers offers significant employment opportunities for Bangladesh, but a shortage of Japanese language skills and qualified trainers continues to prevent the country from taking full advantage of the market.
Despite years of bilateral agreements and training initiatives, Bangladesh has struggled to produce enough workers with language proficiency and technical skills required by Japanese employers.
Japan faces a growing labour shortage, with demand for foreign workers in information technology, nursing, caregiving, agriculture, engineering and manufacturing. Yet many Bangladeshi jobseekers struggle to progress beyond the initial stages of preparation.
The issue has returned to the spotlight following Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s recent visit to Japan, where discussions covered expanding employment opportunities for Bangladeshis, improving Japanese language education, simplifying the Technical Intern Training Visa process and securing Japanese assistance to address the shortage of language teachers.
Dhaka and Tokyo signed an agreement in July 2005 to create technical training and employment opportunities for Bangladeshi workers, yet only 41 workers were sent to Japan over the following eight years.
In 2015, another agreement was signed with the Japanese organisation IM Japan to train 500 Bangladeshis. A year-long programme in manufacturing and construction followed in 2017, but neither initiative led to sustained, large-scale employment.
In August 2019, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Cooperation to facilitate recruitment under the Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) scheme.
However, gaps in language training, skills assessment and recruitment transparency continued to hamper progress.
According to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), 163 Bangladeshis went to Japan in 2018.
Against a target of 400 in 2019, only 119 were sent by July that year.
BMET arranged training for 40 trainees at each of 27 centres nationwide.
In 2019, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment also decided to involve private recruiting agencies in language training, but progress remained limited.
Japan’s immigration statistics show that 11,756 Bangladeshis were working there under the Technical Intern Training, Specified Skilled Worker and Engineer visa categories as of December 2025.
Coordinator at North South University’s Centre for Migration Studies, Associate Professor Selim Reza attributed the slow progress to shortcomings in language education and skills development.
“As a result, despite having a large young population, we failed to turn this demographic advantage into sustainable employment,” he wrote in a recent column.
Japanese language proficiency is essential for understanding workplace instructions, communicating with colleagues and managing daily life. Many jobs require at least N4-level proficiency, while N3 and N2 offer additional advantages. Candidates must pass recognised examinations to obtain language certificates.
Md Saberul Islam, originally from Manikganj, moved to Japan in 1988 struggled initially because he could not speak Japanese.
After coming to Japan without a basic grasp of the language, I could not even manage daily activities, said Saberul while speaking to TIMES, adding: “survival without Japanese is difficult.”
Another expatriate, Shahriar Islam Jaky, said workers often needed N2-level proficiency to change employers, a standard many Bangladeshis struggle to achieve.
Director at the Institute of Modern Languages (IML), University of Dhaka, Mohammad Absar Kamal, said “N4 or N3 may be necessary. However, the requirement should depend on the employer and the needs of each sector.”
Highlighting that conventional Japanese is not enough, he underlined the need for workers to learn vocabulary and conversations related to their jobs.
“Separate training manuals should be developed for this purpose.”
High costs, limited training facilities outside Dhaka and teacher shortages present further obstacles, particularly for rural jobseekers.
Private institutions charge up to Tk25,000 for a basic Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) N5 course, around Tk30,000 for N4 and up to Tk40,000 for N3. Courses generally last three to six months.
A combined N5 and N4 course at the Japan University Alumni Association of Bangladesh (JUAAB) costs Tk35,000.
Some government Technical Training Centres offer courses for as little as Tk1,000, excluding books, learning materials, admission, registration and examination fees.
Several students at Dhaka University’s Institute of Modern Languages said they moved to the capital to study Japanese.
“The tuition fee is manageable. The main expense is the learning materials,” one remarked.
Chairman of the Department of Japanese, University of Dhaka, Md Jahangir Alam, said better preparation can improve migrants’ earnings.
“Building proper skills at home before going to Japan offers many advantages. Workers with solid language and technical skills can earn better salaries. This can also increase the country’s remittance inflow,” he told TIMES.
IML Director Kamal suggested appointing graduates with Japanese language qualifications as basic instructors in schools. He said proposals had been submitted for standard textbooks, curricula and training manuals.
“We have told the government about the need to develop specific books, curricula and manuals,” he said.
Discussions on establishing a dedicated cell, allocating funds and coordinating activities were also underway.
The government has recently taken steps to expand training.
At a seminar in August, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Education and Primary and Mass Education Mahdi Amin said efforts were underway to ease visa and accommodation procedures for Japanese teachers coming to Bangladesh.
A database is being developed to connect trained workers with Japanese employers. A university has been assigned to collect information on candidates who have taken Japanese language examinations, including the JLPT and Japan Foundation Test (JFT).
Additional JLPT examination centres have opened, while the National Skills Development Authority (NSDA) has been authorised to provide language and technical training in line with Japanese standards.
The overseas employment ministry has introduced a loan scheme for prospective migrants seeking language training.
Japanese language trainers, previously paid Tk500 an hour, now receive a monthly allowance. Plans are also underway to train experienced instructors to deliver advanced courses.
In October, a Japan Foundation trainer visited Bangladesh to train local instructors.
With Japanese support, a project titled “Providing Training under Specific Skilled Including Japanese Language to One Lakh Bangladeshi Aspirant Migrants to Japan” has been developed to train 1,00,000 prospective migrants.
N5 courses are available at 36 colleges under a university programme, including 16 that also offer N4 training.
Japanese language training is also available at nearly 200 locations through the Japan Institute of Advanced and Asian Studies under Dhaka University, Bank University, JUAAB and other institutions.
