The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday confirmed that the Guyana Government has authorized a recruiting agency to hire 500 Bangladeshi healthcare workers for both the private and public sectors.
A statement was issued after Stabroek News had contacted both President Irfaan Ali and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hugh Todd on the matter.
The ministry noted that a letter addressed to Sigma Engineers Ltd. Inc dated 5 February 2024 was in circulation regarding the recruitment of Bangladesh healthcare workers.
“The Ministry in response to a request from Sigma Engineers Ltd., issued the letter to confirm that the agency was authorized to recruit healthcare workers, with the view to addressing concerns raised both by the public and private sectors on the severe skills shortage in the health sector. The Private Sector Commission has on numerous occasions requested the Government’s assistance in addressing the need to fill the skills shortages not only in the health sector but also in the critical sectors of construction, engineering, and services given the expansion and growth of Guyana’s economy.
“In this regard, the recruitment agency was appointed to liaise with relevant authorities from various countries to recruit healthcare workers including, but not limited to Bangladesh. It is within this context that the authorization letter was issued by the Ministry to prevent issues such as human trafficking or any abuse of this process”, the ministry said.
The ministry said however that no recruitment had actually occurred from Bangladesh as yet and shortages are presently being filled from Cuba.
“The Ministry wishes to confirm that to date, no one has been recruited through Sigma Engineers Ltd. Inc as shortages are currently being filled by personnel from Cuba. The Government of Guyana remains open to the recruitment of specialized skills which do not currently exist in Guyana from any part of the globe, for both the public and private sectors”, the statement said.
The letter from the ministry to Sigma said that the agency had been appointed by Government of Guyana to recruit 500 Bangladeshi healthcare workers for employment and to “liaise with relevant authorities concerning the recruitment”.
The letter carried Todd’s signature in addition to attestations by the Guyana Embassy in the United States and the Bangladesh Embassy in the United States. It also carried a stamp of a notary public in Washington DC.
Questions might arise as to why recruitment was authorized from Bangladesh in the first instance. There was no information on the categories of healthcare workers being recruited.
The recruiting agency is also engaged in business in Guyana. On October 13, 2022, it was awarded a contract by Guyana Water Inc for a water treatment plant.
