Dhaka, Nov 24 (bdnews24.com)--Labour and employment minister Mosharraf Hossain has said the government will appoint an officer to missions in Middle Eastern countries to look after the problems of Bangladeshi women workers.

As much as 85 percent of Bangladeshi women workers in the Middle East are subjected to physical torture, while 20 percent of them are sexually abused, according to a report.

They face particular difficulties with physical harassment, said the report by Obhibashi Kormi Unnoyon Programme (OKUP), supported by UNDP, on women workers abroad.

"The officers will be immediately appointed to those Arab countries where there are most Banglaeshi workers," the minister told reporters on Tuesday after the report was published.

They will oversee problems faced by those women, including physical and sexual harassments, he added.

The minister said the government was planning to introduce insurance policy for them for risks.

"The government, with cooperation of other human labour-exporting countries of the world, is trying to establish a benchmark to ensure the security and minimum facilities for the women workers in a foreign country."

A committee of human labour-exporting countries is already working on it, Hossain added.

Some one lakh women are working abroad, most of them in different countries in the Middle East, said the OKUP report on HIV/AIDS risk of Bangladeshi women working abroad.

It said 20 percent get involved in different relationships and become sexually exploited at one point. Illegal migrant workers are more prone to exploitation than those are legal, said the report.

It added that illegal migrant workers are more vulnerable for HIV/AIDS infection as they do not have adequate awareness. The report did not include any data or statistics about HIV/AIDS-infected illegal women migrant workers though.

The report also focused on the daily problems that a woman worker faces, for example, less payment, not getting leave, forced overtime and not getting enough food.

Recommendations were made for the government to launch more awareness campaign and stop illegal immigration of the female workers to help tackle the risk of HIV/AIDS infection and other health issues.

Acting labour and employment secretary Ilias Ahmed, UNDP country director Stefan Priesner and OKUP chairman Shakil-ul-Islam were present at the programme.

bdnews24.com/rar/pks/fwc/bd/2214h.