Staff Reporter:
Emphasising strong bilateral ties with the United Kingdom (UK), Foreign Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Wednesday drew attention to the ongoing “misinformation campaigns” against Bang-ladesh and appreciated strong support of friends in the UK Parliament in fending off such mali-cious efforts.
He praised the strong bilateral trade and investment ties between the two countries, urging British businesses to seize Bangladesh’s economic opportunities and called for innovative ideas to further enhance the relationship.
The issues were discussed when a visiting delegation of the UK-Bangladesh Catalysts of Com-merce and Industry (UKBCCI), including Dr Rupa Huq, an MP of House of Commons of the Brit-ish Parliament, called on the Foreign Affairs Adviser at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Dr Rupa Huq underlined Bangladesh’s immense potential, particularly the presence of huge num-ber of young population.
While expressing the hope for a corruption-free new Bangladesh with continued progress, she shared optimism about diversification of Bangladesh’s export basket and the prospect of its prawn industry.
She further wished for improvement in labour rights and laws in Bangladesh.
Adviser Hossain highlighted sacrifices of the students and mass people during the July-August up-rising, and ongoing institutional and economic reforms under the interim government led by Prof Muhammad Yunus, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The delegates from UKBCCI spoke on inter-alia market expansion, investment opportunities and BIDA’s role in upgrading the investment landscape.
They emphasised opportunities related to recruitment of Bangladeshi skilled workers in the nurs-ing, caregiving, hospitality and service sectors of the UK, and the need for langue training, cultural orientation and skill development.
As the delegates are mostly Bangladeshi-origin British nationals, they aspired for improved services from the Bangladesh missions abroad.
Both parties praised Bangladesh’s enormous prospect in this shifting political landscape and pledged to intensify efforts to expand business relations between Bangladesh and the UK.
