A Bangladeshi minister's claim that Malaysia plans to recruit 200,000 Bangladeshi workers over the next six months does not represent the official position of the Bangladeshi government, Malaysian government spokesman Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said on Wednesday.

He said Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri R Ramanan had informed him that the statement was made by a junior minister and should not be regarded as an official declaration by the Bangladeshi government, the New Straits Times reports.

"It does not represent the official decision of the Bangladeshi government. That is what the Human Resources Minister informed me. So, it is not an official position," he told reporters during his weekly press conference.

Earlier, Bangladesh’s Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives State Minister Mir Shahe Alam said Malaysia had planned to recruit about 200,000 Bangladeshi workers over the next six months.

He made the remarks while speaking to reporters after a meeting between Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Mohd Shuhada Othman and LGRD and Co-operatives Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan at the Secretariat.

“The manpower export from Bangladesh will begin by the end of September and will be completed within the next six months,” he said, citing the high commissioner.

Asked about the number of workers to be recruited, Shahe Alam said, “A total of 200,000 will go through their listed companies.”

He said Malaysia will also take an additional 10,000 Bangladeshi workers at zero cost, meaning the workers will not have to bear any recruitment-related expenses.

“That will also begin in phases towards the end of September,” he said.

He said the workers would be recruited through companies approved by Malaysian authorities, with recruitment beginning in phases at the end of September and completed within six months.

In June, Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to consider reopening Malaysia's labour market to Bangladeshi workers.