Bangladesh, Aug. 28 -- The Malaysian government has listed 312 more Bangladeshi manpower hiring firms as authorised "associate recruiting agencies" for its labour market.

The overseas employment ministry in Dhaka shared the development in a media statement on Friday.

Previously, only 25 agencies and state-run Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL) had been cleared under Malaysia's Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS) -- a decision that drew protests from former leaders of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), who feared it would create a syndicate.

The ministry blamed the situation on a 2022 memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed under the "fascist" Awami Leagu...