The two-day World Peace Conference ended in Dhaka on Sunday, emphasizing the importance of democracy, good governance and the rule of law as critical factors for global peace and stability. It underlined the need for social justice and inclusive development as central pillars of a stable, peaceful and equitable society.  The conference valued the role played by national parliaments and local government institutions in giving voice to people’s legitimate demands and aspirations. Read:Let’s dream of a better world, FM Momen tells peace conference The representatives of governments, legislatures, academia, civil society and media, gathered here at the World Peace Conference from December 4-5 condemned colonialism, illegal occupation and unauthorized takeover of power under any pretexts.  "We recognize the role of peace making, peace building and mediation to prevent and end conflicts," they said in "Dhaka Peace Declaration.” They commended the UN peacekeeping personnel for their dedication and services, and maintain faith in the agency of women and youth in ensuring peace and security. 

Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged world leaders to gear up the global vaccination drive and synergize sustainable and inclusive recovery as the new variant of Covid-19, ‘Omicron’, posed new challenges. “The spread of Omicron variant underlines this urgency,” he said in a video message on the occasion of the two-day World Peace Conference that began in Dhaka on Saturday, noting that cooperation and elevated political will is critical. Now it is the second year that Covid-19 pandemic continues to cause immense sufferings with huge economic losses while reports suggest Omicron has been found in close to 40 countries. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said the world should not panic about the new Omicron variant of Covid-19 but it should prepare. Speaking at a conference on Friday, top WHO scientist Soumya Swaminathan said the situation now was very different to a year ago. In his video message played during the inaugural session of the conference, the former UN chief highlighted the great importance of coming together to holistically advance peace through social inclusion during the period of great change. Read:India reports first two Covid cases of Omicron variant “I believe we’ve invaluable opportunities to change the world for the better, but to do this we need to work together through a driving commitment to peace, sustainability, inclusion, the power of partnership and multilateral cooperation,” Ban said. He said the Covid-19 pandemic amplified the inequalities and the ongoing recovery will be prolonged. “We need to ensure equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccine and fight against vaccine inequity. This is the most pressing task ahead of us.”

Hosting the World Peace Conference here is the testimony of Bangladesh's "unflinching commitment" to the promotion of global peace, security, and development, said Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen. "The country, under the pragmatic statesmanship of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, will continue to remain on the side of any initiative to promote peace as a fundamental premise for our pursuit of sustainable development," he said. Dr Momen reiterated that Bangladesh continues to be inspired by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who firmly believed in democratic rights, people's welfare and social justice as the cornerstone for building a peaceful world. He made the remarks welcoming the participants of the World Peace Conference at a dinner that he hosted at a city hotel on Friday. Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam, State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak and Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen were, among others, present. On behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Chief Patron of the World Peace Conference and on his personal behalf, Dr Momen welcomed the participants in this historic city. Read: Bangladesh’s World Peace Conference: Ban Ki-moon, Gordon Brown among global figures The Foreign Minister paid deepest respect to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, whose unprecedented charismatic leadership and long struggle helped achieve long-cherished independence. "Our enduring commitment to global peace has been best exemplified through the ‘People’s Empowerment and Development,’ a peace-centric model that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina proposed to the UN in 2011, leading to its adoption by a consensus by the comity of nations," Dr Momen said. He said peace is more than a suspension of war and peace covers everything that contributes to lowering international tensions: cooperation that eases competition for scarce resources, institutions that channel power rivalries and allow better management of global public goods, regulation that responds to new abuses power or inequalities born of globalization, bridges between generations as well as equality between women and men for peaceful societies. "Peace can only be sustainable through appropriate and effective global governance to respond to global challenges," Dr Momen said. He said the Prime Minister’s remarkable efforts to establish a culture of peace not only in her own country or in the region, but in the world, made her one of the Champions of Peace of the present days. Her commitment towards fulfilment of the dream of Bangabandhu to make Bangladesh a Sonar Bangla- the Golden Bengal, has resulted into current day’s Bangladesh – a prosperous and peaceful country, said the Foreign Minister. Read: World Peace Conference: Dhaka to adopt ‘Peace Declaration’ President Abdul Hamid will inaugurate the "World Peace Conference-2021" on Saturday that will bring together global thinkers, political personalities and peace promoters. The conference will look back on Bangabandhu’s vision and political struggle for peace. Hasina will attend the closing ceremony of the two-day conference on Sunday as the chief guest. Both the President and the Prime Minister will join the event virtually. The conference, to be held in a hybrid format through both physical and virtual participation, will also shed light on the legacy being carried forward by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in her “untiring quest” of building a peaceful, just, rights-based, inclusive and prosperous nation. “Bangladesh will get a special document through adoption of – “Dhaka Peace Declaration” – which will work as a reference for Bangladesh’s all peace and security-related global initiatives to be taken in the future,” said the Foreign Minister.

A friendly T-10 cricket match was held on Tuesday at the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey Stadium, marking the World Peace Conference 2021 to be held in Dhaka on December 4-5.  Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen inaugurated the match as the chief guest. Read: T10 Cricket on Nov 30 marking World Peace Conference Bangladesh is going to host the World Peace Conference on the occasion of the golden jubilee of Bangladesh and the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.  The cricket match was a part of the celebration. 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) with support from the Bangladesh Hockey Federation (BHF) will hold a friendly T10 Cricket match on Tuesday marking the forthcoming World Peace Conference’2021 in Dhaka. The match will kick off at 10 am at the Maulana Bhashani Hockey Stadium here.  Read:Chattogram Test: Shaheen puts pressure back on Bangladesh Two teams -- Team Harmony and Team Unity -- studded with former national cricketers will compete in the match.

Bangladesh will host a two-day world peace conference on December 4-5, marking the ongoing birth centenary celebration of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and 50 years of independence. Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen shared the update while talking to a small group of journalists on Monday. “We want to do it in-person. We hope there’ll be an improvement in the Covid situation by this time. Initially, we thought it would be hosted in November,” he said, adding that the government is planning to introduce the Bangabandhu Peace Award during the conference. READ: Dhaka to host World Peace Conference in November Dr Momen said the world peace conference will be organised with the participation of progressive personalities and intellectuals who are promoting peace in the world.  On the vaccine issue, the Foreign Minister said vaccine doses will come but the health ministry knows about the time and its exact quantity. He said Japan, being a big friend of Bangladesh, will also send vaccine doses under the Covax facility while China says they have no problem providing vaccines. READ: Role of MPs important in building world peace: President The Foreign Minister expressed displeasure as people are not following health guidelines and the infection rate is on the rise. “There’s no alternative to maintaining health guidelines.”

Bangladesh will host a two-day world peace conference in November this year, marking the ongoing birth centenary celebration of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as part of promoting a culture of peace and tolerance. Bangabandhu Peace Award will be introduced and conferred during the conference. Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said this while addressing a discussion at Foreign Service Academy, marking the anniversary of Bangabandhu's Joliot Curie Peace Prize given in recognition of his contributions to world peace. Also read: New Delhi mission observes Bangabandhu's Joliot-Curie award anniversary The Father of the Nation, who was a proponent of peace and addressing problems with dialogue, diplomacy and peaceful resolution of conflicts, was awarded the medal on May 23, 1973. It was the first international award to the newly-independent Bangladesh.