Outgoing Dutch Ambassador to Bangladesh Irma van Dueren on Monday paid a farewell call on Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and reiterated her government’s commitment to extend technical support for the interim government’s reform agenda.

During the meeting at the State guesthouse Jamuna, the chief adviser recalled his fruitful bilateral meeting with the Dutch prime minister last month in New York on the sidelines of the 79th UNGA, where he discussed with his Dutch counterpart technical assistance in the elimination of corruption, flood management and agriculture sector in Bangladesh.

They also discussed trade preferences from the European Union (EU) beyond 2029, improvement of working conditions in the RMG sector, women empowerment and upcoming youth festivity in Bangladesh.

The chief adviser congratulated the Dutch ambassador on her successful completion of the tour of duty in Bangladesh, and the Dutch Ambassador shared her fond memories of working in Bangladesh, particularly witnessing the full-fledged revolution in Bangladesh in July-August this year.

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The outgoing Dutch ambassador also paid a farewell courtesy call on Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin on Sunday.

The foreign secretary congratulated the Dutch Ambassador on her successful completion of the tour of duty in Bangladesh and the Dutch Ambassador thanked the Foreign Secretary for all the support she received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in discharging her responsibilities.

They touched upon multi-faceted bilateral cooperation spanning across areas inter-alia water, agriculture, trade & investment, climate change, defence, and women empowerment.

The ambassador also conveyed the Dutch government’s readiness to extend technical support for the interim government’s reform agenda as well as expressed Dutch companies’ enhanced interest in expansion of business ties with Bangladesh, particularly in water, maritime and agriculture sectors.

The courtesy call was followed by a farewell luncheon in honour of the outgoing envoy by the Foreign Secretary.

The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassador of Morocco, Ambassadors/High Commissioners/CDA of India, the UK, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Italy, Argentina, Spain, Norway, EU, France and Egypt, UNDP Resident Representative and DCM of Denmark, among others, joined the lunch.