Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday inaugurated a special lounge for the country's migrant workers at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to make sure that Bangladeshi expatriates get the honour and facilities like guests for their significant contributions to the country.

“Our migrant workers are nation builders. In the July-August mass uprising, they played a big role. We will always be grateful to them," Prof Yunus said.

The Probashi Lounge is a first of its kind at the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport. “We believe this lounge will make their travel easy,” Prof Yunus said.

It will offer Bangladeshi migrant workers some space to rest and subsidised food for refreshments.

Prof Yunus said many more steps will hopefully be taken so that migrant workers can think that they are at home with peace after coming here; and everyone is taking care of them, serving them well.

He said the nation should give the migrant workers the due respect that they deserve. “Bangladeshi migrants contribute to the country sending remittance and they should get the proper respect.”

Prof Yunus stressed the need for easing the government services for the expatriates and said e-passports should now be issued for the Bangladeshi expatriates.

Asif Nazrul, the law and expatriate welfare adviser, and senior officials of the International Organisation for Migration were also present during the ceremony.

Nazrul paid tributes to the Bangladeshi migrant workers and millions of members of the country's diaspora who sacrificed time and again for their homeland.

Fathima Nusrath Ghazzali, acting chief of the IOM mission in Bangladesh, said the UN agency has sponsored the lounge in an effort to assist the Bangladeshi migrant workers.

"This is an initiative of the Chief Adviser. We are happy to support this initiative," she said, adding the IOM is also sponsoring nearly 100 volunteers to help the migrants at the airport.