Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus will attend the 11th D-8 Summit which will be held in Cairo, Egypt on December 19.  The Chief Adviser is scheduled to leave Dhaka for Cairo, Egypt early Wednesday (December 18), his Deputy Press Secretary Apurba Jahangir told UNB without elaborating further.  Dr Yunus is likely to have a number of meetings on the sidelines of the Summit and preparations are underway, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  This week marks a "pivotal moment" for the D-8 with the 48th Session of the D-8 Commission meeting held in Cairo.  Over the next few days, key discussions will unfold, culminating in the 21st Session of the D-8 Council of Foreign Ministers on December 18 and the highly anticipated 11th D-8 Summit on December 19. These meetings will bring together leaders to strengthen economic cooperation and outline a shared vision for sustainable development among member states. The D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation, also known as Developing-8, is an organisation for development cooperation among Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey.  Read: Chief Adviser invited to attend D-8 Summit in Cairo this December Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, among others, are scheduled to join Prof Yunus at the Summit.  Shehbaz Sharif will visit Cairo from December 18-20 to participate in the Developing Eight (D8) Summit. The establishment of the D-8  Organisation for Economic Cooperation was announced officially through the Istanbul Declaration of Summit of Heads of State/Government on 15 June, 1997. Earlier, Egypt invited Chief Adviser Prof Yunus to attend the D-8 Summit. At the Summit, Indonesia will accept the D-8 chairmanship from the current chair, Egypt, for the 2026-2027 period. Indonesia's chairmanship of the D-8 organization will begin on January 1, 2026. Read more: Egypt invites CA Prof Yunus to attend D-8 Summit this year The role of D-8 is increasingly important in the joint efforts to strengthen global awareness of the situation in Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip, which is still under Israeli aggression. The D-8 Summit in Cairo, which will be held under the theme "Investing in Youth and Supporting Small Medium Enterprises, Shaping Tomorrow's Economy," reflects the organization's focus on youth and MSMEs issues for the future economy.

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday urged the SAARC Secretariat to work more intensely to make the regional body functional for the shared benefit of the South Asian countries. “SAARC is a forgotten word. If you can revitalise it, this will give dividends to the people of the whole region,” said the Chief Adviser. Professor Yunus made the comment when Secretary General of SAARC Golam Sarwar called on him at his office in Tejgaon, Dhaka. Focus on opportunities, challenges in Bangladesh-India ties: Roundtable Secretary General Sarwar thanked Professor Yunus for being an ardent supporter of the SAARC and said that they were encouraged by his recent call to South Asian leaders for the revival of the multilateral body. He briefed the Bangladesh Chief Adviser about the ongoing activities of SAARC at the working level, including the Programming Committee, Governing Bodies of Regional Centres and Specialised Bodies, events on climate change, SDGs, regional integration, customs cooperation, among others. He said that in the absence of high-level meetings, the functional initiatives were not getting adequate strength and clarity. Professor Yunus and the SAARC Secretary General discussed the need for meetings of foreign secretaries, foreign ministers, and other sectoral ministers, and even summit of the leaders for better functioning of the body. Changed scenario: Dhaka optimistic to establish good ties with Delhi “We have partnerships with a lot of organizations. We are trying to explore those,” said Secretary General Sarwar. Professor Yunus asked Secretary General Sarwar to work on multilateral issues such as the export of hydroelectric power of Nepal to neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, India, and Bhutan. Professor Yunus invited young people from SAARC countries to join the youth festival in Bangladesh in January 2025. UNAOC: Dhaka highlights its unwavering commitment to peace, humanity “This will be good because this focuses on youth. The whole SAARC idea is to bring people together. This could be one way of opening the door,” he said. This year, SAARC celebrates the historic 40th Charter Day.  The SAARC Secretary General requested continued support and guidance from the Government of Bangladesh for reinvigorating the SAARC process in realising the charter objectives of the association.

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Tuesday had brief interactions separately with a number of leaders as COP29, UN's biggest climate conference, is underway. Prof Yunus met with Prime Minister Daniel Risch of Liechtenstein and Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay of Bhutan. He also met with President Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives and President Denis Becriovic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Read: COP29: “Won’t revert back to the energy system of the 1950s,” says US top climate negotiator