Foreign-Affairs
Dhaka, Beijing review Rohingya repatriation effort
Bangladesh and China on Sunday (May 28, 2023) reviewed the ongoing efforts for repatriation of the Rohingyas to their homeland in Myanmar smoothly and on an expedited basis.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen thanked the Chinese government for making sincere efforts for the safe and quick repatriation of the displaced population.
Momen and Vice Foreign Minister of China Sun Weidon agreed that the problem needed an urgent solution, because if left unaddressed for any longer, it could potentially evolve as a tangible threat to regional security and stability.
During his meeting with Momen, the vice foreign minister of China highly lauded the remarkable socio-economic transformation of Bangladesh under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Read more: Rohingya Case: OIC Secretary General seeks support from member states
Momen highly appreciated the substantial contributions made by China towards the developmental journey of Bangladesh.
He profusely admired the excellent bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and expressed optimism that the constructive and collaborative relations would be further strengthened in the days ahead.
Momen congratulated Sun for the successful holding of the bilateral consultations on May 27 in Dhaka.
Noting the deep cultural, historical and civilization links between the two countries, Foreign Minister Momen mentioned about the visit of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to China in the 1950s and the book he wrote on what he saw.
Read more: Rohingyas not satisfied with the Myanmar delegation’s assurances
Sharing his admiration for the magnificent Padma Multipurpose Bridge, Sun mentioned that the structure stands out as a new symbol of the friendship between Bangladesh and China and observed that the two countries could achieve miracles through greater and better synergies.
Momen invited and encouraged larger flow of Chinese FDI into Bangladesh for mutual benefit of both the countries.
He recalled with profound appreciation the assistance that China offered during the Covid-19 pandemic and mentioned his brief meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister in Dhaka in January this year.
While discussing the facility of duty-free and quota-free access to 98% Bangladeshi products to China, he hoped that all necessary measures would be taken so that Bangladesh could get optimum benefit out of this arrangement.
Read more: Joint operation to prevent crime, violence in Rohingya camps soon: Home Minister
He also stressed on an expedited implementation of the projects agreed during the last visit of the Chinese President Xi Jinping to Bangladesh.
Sun praised Bangladesh’s energetic youth population capable of making a significant change in the society and economy.
He referred to the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative of the Chinese President Xi Jinping and hoped that Bangladesh reaped the maximum benefits out of this grand scheme.
China eager to boost cooperation with Bangladesh in renewable energy: Chinese vice-minister
China is keen to strengthen cooperation with Bangladesh in several sectors particularly renewable energy and hi-tech.
Chinese vice-minister of foreign affairs Sun Weidong expressed this eagerness, during a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the latter’s official residence Ganabhaban on Sunday.
PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting.
The Chinese vice-minister said his country and Bangladesh can cooperate in sectors like renewable energy and hi-tech. There is potential for more cooperation here, he said.
The prime minister said China is one of the major development partners of Bangladesh. In the bilateral relations between the two countries, the main focus should be on how to further develop the two countries.
She said Bangladesh allotted lands to Chinese entrepreneurs in Economic zones in Bangladesh where they can set up industries.
Read more: PM seeks strong commitment from int'l community for dignified repatriation of Rohingyas
The Chinese vice-minister conveyed the greetings of the Chinese President and the Prime Minister to Sheikh Hasina.
Praising the development of Bangladesh, he said he visited Bangladesh some 10 years ago, but this time he found Bangladesh much more developed. Bangladesh witnessed tremendous development under the leadership of Hasina, he said.
He said he visited Padma Bridge and five other China-assisted projects in Bangladesh.
The prime minister also conveyed her personal regards to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
She said some 6,000 Bangladeshi students are pursuing study in China and many of them returned home during the COVID pandemic.
PM Hasina thanked the Chinese government for facilitating Bangladeshi students to return to China after the pandemic.
PM’s Ambassador-at-large Mohammad Ziauddin, PM’s Principal Secretary M. Tofazzel Hossain Miah, Secretary (Maritime Affairs Unit) at the Foreign Ministry Rear Admiral (Retd) Md Khurshed Alam and Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen were present.
The Chinese vice-minister of foreign affairs arrived in Dhaka on Friday night on a two-day official visit.
UNICEF, BGMEA launch capacity building training to support mothers at work
UNICEF and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) have launched a training program to build the capacity of garment factories in promoting maternity rights of women workers and facilitate breastfeeding in the sector.
Mid-level management employees from the garment factories took part in the training program held at the auditorium of BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology (BUFT) in Dhaka on Sunday.
The opening ceremony of the training program was attended by BGMEA Director Neela Hosana Ara.
In the program, the participants were provided with training in seven minimum standards including paid maternity leave, breastfeeding accommodations, provision of breastfeeding breaks, flexible working arrangements, medical benefits and provision of day-care.
Bangladesh-Oman foreign office consultations held at Muscat
Bangladesh and Oman on Sunday discussed cooperation in the areas of manpower, clean energy, trade and investment.
At the third round of political consultations held at the Omani Foreign Ministry in Muscat, the two countries took note of the need for holding the Joint Technical Committee meeting on manpower cooperation soon.
They also underlined the need for deeper engagement in trade and economic fields between the two countries through setting up a Joint Business Chamber between apex trade bodies, initiating port-to-port connectivity, higher interaction and visits among businesses between the two countries.
Both sides expressed satisfaction over the regular consultations and agreed to diversify cooperation in various areas of clean energy, direct shipping, recruitment of healthcare professionals, and Information Technology to enhance and consolidate the existing relationship.
The Bangladesh delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen while the Omani side was led by Sheikh Khalifa Alharthy, the Undersecretary for Political Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Read: UN expert for redoubling commitments on part of international community to address Rohingya crIsis
The consultations were attended by Bangladesh’s Ambassador to Oman Md. Nazmul Islam and Director General (West Asia) Md. Shafiqur Rahman and officials from both foreign ministries.
UN expert for redoubling commitments on part of international community to address Rohingya crIsis
UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights Oliver de Schutter has reflected on his findings regarding the challenges posed by climate change and the Rohingya crisis, and underscored the need for redoubling commitments and contributions on the part of the international community.
While making a few recommendations, the Special Rapporteur also underscored the linkages between the economic, social and cultural rights and the civil and political rights, and opined that this has an important bearing on making the progress sustainable.
He met State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahriar Alam at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.
The State Minister underscored the critical importance of due diligence, neutrality and objectivity of all, including the UN system as well as the CSOs that are active in the arena of human rights.
He also highlighted Bangladesh’s ongoing collaboration with the UN Human Rights mechanism, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During the meeting the Special Rapporteur debriefed about his visit to Bangladesh.
He appreciated the remarkable progress of Bangladesh in reducing the upper poverty line from 48.9% to 18.7%, and the lower poverty line from 34.3% to 5.6%.
HBL reiterates its commitment to strengthen Bangladesh-China business ties
Country Manager of HBL China Cheng Wei (Amanda) has said they can strengthen dialogue, seize opportunities, and jointly achieve a fruitful cooperation in finance and trade under the context of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that benefits all parties.
“China-Bangladesh friendship goes way back to the inception of Bangladesh and both the countries have continuously created new economic and trade vitality in this new era of the Belt and Road Initiative,” she said
The Country manager said as a financial institution rooted in Bangladesh for many years, HBL Bangladesh has been committed to expanding closer cooperation with local enterprises and financial institutions from the perspective of diversified financial support.
HBL, a bank with operations spread across multiple geographies, hosted a “China Night 2023” in Dhaka on Saturday to increase economic collaboration between Bangladesh and China and to showcase HBL’s regional positioning and China capabilities.
Lokman Hossain Miah, Executive Chairman of Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), Song Yang, Economic and Commercial Counsellor of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, and senior representative of local conglomerates and leaders from Chinese companies operating in Bangladesh were present.
HBL was represented by Farhan Talib, Regional General Manager, Singapore and China – HBL, Selim Barkat, Country Manager - HBL Bangladesh, Zeeshan Malik, Global Head of China Coverage - HBL, and other colleagues from HBL China and Bangladesh
During the event, HBL presented its expertise in serving the Bangladeshi and Chinese business communities offering innovative solutions related to customer connectivity, trade facilitation, RMB settlement and trade discounting.
Lokman Hossain Miah spoke of Bangladesh being very welcoming of foreign investments with BIDA playing an important role facilitating Chinese companies to establish operations in all sectors, said a media release on Sunday.
Miah encouraged more Chinese investments in the country and made note of a very supporting environment that the country offers to Chinese companies towards manufacturing and exporting products to the various regions of the world.
Combating Marine Pollution: Dhaka lauds Delhi’s initiative in drawing global attention
Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury on Sunday said Bangladesh, under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has always been at the forefront of climate action.
He lauded this initiative of the government of India as instrumental in drawing global attention to the need to combat coastal and marine pollution and to the critical role that citizen-centric participation plays in addressing it.
The High Commission of India in partnership with local organizations organized a “beach cleaning” activity, the “G20 Mega Beach Clean Up” at Patenga Beach in Chattogram. Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury attended the event as the chief guest.
Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma said the joint endeavour to preserve and protect coastal and marine habitat is a natural extension of the shared values and priorities of Bangladesh and India.
“India-Bangladesh bilateral relations are multifaceted and manifest in active cooperation in wide-ranging areas, including protection of shared natural ecosystems,” he said.
ODA Loan: JICA’s 2nd highest commitment, disbursement in local grounds
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has reported that during the Japanese Fiscal Year 2022, spanning from April 2022 to March 2023, both its commitment and disbursement have reached the second highest levels since its ODA loan support in Bangladesh began in March 1974.
For the said FY, JICA has committed a total of 331 billion Japanese Yen across 5 crucial projects, further solidifying its long-standing history of cooperation with Bangladesh.
The total commitment of ODA loan in Bangladesh consists of the five key projects - Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project (Line 5 Northern Route), Southern Chattogram Regional Development Project , Matarbari Port Development Project, Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar Highway Improvement Project and Project for the Construction of Dual Gauge Double Line between Joydebpur – Ishwardi
This extraordinary achievement follows JICA’s record maximum in Japanese FY2020, where the organization reached the highest commitment of 373 billion Japanese Yen.
In coming times, JICA aims to continue working with Bangladesh to realize its development agenda, said a media release on Sunday.
JICA’s disbursement in Japanese FY 2022 amounted to 261 billion Japanese Yen, slightly below the 264 billion Japanese Yen disbursement during Japanese FY 2021. The record setting feat of FY 2022 can be attributed to the steady progress of the ongoing mega projects.
Over the past decade, JICA has steadfastly expanded its collaboration with Bangladesh through ODA loans, grants, and technical cooperation schemes, effectively meeting the country’s growing demand for a heightened economic and social infrastructure.
Bangladesh embassy in Mexico City celebrates Bengali New Year
The Bangladesh embassy in Mexico City came alive with vibrant colors and joyful festivities as it celebrated Bengali New Year 1430 on May 27.
The event, originally scheduled for April 14, was rescheduled to accommodate the month of Ramadan.
The celebrations commenced with a traditional "Procession for Wellbeing (Mongal Shovajatra)" that started from the Embassy premises. The procession dazzled onlookers with an array of Pahela Baishakh masks, featuring captivating designs such as tepa putul, owl, tiger, peacock, and elephant heads, along with vibrant festoons and banners.
Thailand eyes deeper ties with Bangladesh: Thai Envoy
Thai Ambassador to Bangladesh Makawadee Sumitmor has said her country is keen to deepen the existing excellent relations with Bangladesh by accelerating people-to-people contacts.
“Bangladesh and Thailand have excellent relations. We hope the ties will deepen further in the days to come by enhancing mutual cooperation and people-to-people contact,” she said.
The Thai envoy made the remarks while inaugurating a seminar on medical tourism organised by Thailand's Payathai-1 Hospital at a city hotel on Friday, said a press release on Sunday.
Ambassador Sumitmor said Thailand and Bangladesh have long been enjoying very friendly bilateral ties that are deeply rooted in the religious, cultural, and linguistic linkages of the two countries.
Stating that people-to-people exchange is the foundation of bilateral relations, she said Thailand is eager to promote deeper mutual understanding at the people-to-people level to strengthen mutual cooperation further.
The Ambassador also mentioned that Bangladesh and Thailand share ancient linkages while the Thai and Bangla languages have many similarities through Sanskrit and Pali.
AMC Chairman Thanapan and AMC, Bangladesh Director Hasib Holy were also present at the opening ceremony of the seminar.
Thailand's renowned Payathai-1 Hospital participated in the seminar with its team of specialist cancer and orthopedic doctors.
Specialist doctors from Payathai-1 Hospital, including Dr Tanwimon Techssatian and Dr Krainon Wasupen, gave free medical advice to the guests who joined the seminar.