Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury. File photo

SANGSAD BHABAN, Sept 3, 2026 (BSS)- Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury today said the government has been working with special emphasis on creating employment and self-employment opportunities while developing the skills of unemployed and disadvantaged youth in the country.

He said the Ministry of Labour and Employment and the Department of Labour have been implementing various programmes in partnership with the public and private sectors to this end.

The minister said this while replying to a scripted question from ruling party lawmaker S M Jahangir Hossain in the Jatiya Sangsad today.

Ariful Haque said the government has taken an initiative to launch an ‘Employment Exchange’ to establish an effective link between job seekers and employers in line with its election manifesto.

“Currently, the process of preparing a concept paper and determining the necessary framework for the Employment Exchange is underway,” he said.

The minister said the Employment Exchange would facilitate registration and preservation of information of job seekers, connect them with employers according to labour market demand, analyse labour market requirements and provide guidance on necessary skills development.

“As a result, job seekers would be able to have easy access to information about employment opportunities and connect with local labour markets,” he added.