Staff Reporter:
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has urged the United Nations (UN) to hire more woman peacekeepers from Bangladesh as he reaffirmed Bangladesh’s unwavering commitment to international peace keeping and security efforts.
The Chief Adviser made the request when UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix met him at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka yesterday.
“One thing that I encourage is the participation of more Bangladeshi women in peacekeeping missions,” said the Chief Adviser during the meeting when issues with regard to UN peacekeeping were discussed elaborately.
Bangladesh consistently ranks among the top three troop/police-contributing countries (TPCCs), with 5,677 peacekeepers across 10 of the 11 active missions.
The UN Under-Secretary-General highlighted the UN policy of engaging more women in peacekeeping.
“We don’t want to confine women to specific roles,” he said, adding the UN would support recruiting women in all aspects of peacekeeping.
Prof Yunus expressed Bangladesh’s readiness to deploy additional troops and police when required, un-derscoring Bangladesh’s pledge of five units at the Rapid Deployment Level in the Peacekeeping Capa-bility Readiness System (PCRS).
He also advocated for increased Bangladeshi representation in UN peacekeeping leadership at both head-quarters and field levels.
The UN official said they would also support Bangladesh in this regard.
The Chief Adviser affirmed that Bangladesh strictly complies with the UN vetting for peacekeepers and welcomed further collaboration with the UN and other bodies on training and accountability to strength-en human rights compliance.
Prof Yunus was told that a Bangladeshi delegation led by the foreign adviser would join the UN peace-keeping ministerial conference to be held in Berlin, Germany, from 13 to 14 May 2025.
The Chief Adviser also expressed concern over ongoing conflict in Myanmar and cross-border firing incidents, civilian casualties, and livelihood disruptions near the Naf River, which acts as a border be-tween Bangladesh and Myanmar.
He warned that continued instability could escalate, creating instability and security risks.
He urged concerted international engagement to resolve the Rohingya crisis.
The Chief Adviser recalled the recent visit of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to Rohingya camps in Southeast Bangladesh, saying that his visit gave Rohingyas renewed hope for a safe and digni-fied repatriation to Myanmar.
