The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, H.E Dr A.K Abdul Momen has called on H.E Vice President Faisal Naseem, this afternoon, as part of Vice President's current three-day official visit to Bangladesh.
The Vice President thanked the Foreign Minister for the warm welcome to Bangladesh and for taking the time to meet with him. Highlighting the longstanding close ties enjoyed by the Maldives and Bangladesh, Vice President Faisal Naseem extended his appreciation to the Bangladeshi government for the assistance provided to the Maldives over the years, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. He also thanked the Minister for the Bangladeshi government's support for the Maldives candidature for the Presidency of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Speaking further regarding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the Maldives, the Vice President underscored that the pandemic had revealed some challenges which need to be addressed, especially relating to the availability of decentralised healthcare. He said that the Maldives government considers the provision of decentralised healthcare services across the nation as an urgent need, and discussed cooperation between the two nations to achieve this goal.
The Bangladeshi Foreign Minister also noted the close friendship between the Maldives and Bangladesh. He mentioned that the country was celebrating their 50th anniversary of independence and the centennial birth anniversary of the founding leader of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, expressing his appreciation that H.E President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih had joined the independence day celebrations held in Bangladesh earlier this year, in March.
The Vice President and Minister further discussed strengthening the people-to-people and government-to-government connections between the two nations. They also discussed signing agreements for cooperation in different sectors, including maritime cooperation, shipping and technical training. Highlighting the large number of registered foreign workers in the Maldives from Bangladesh, the Foreign Minister also requested the assistance of the Maldivian government to register and regularise any unregistered Bangladeshi expatriate workers in the country.
The Minister of Health, H.E Ahmed Naseem, and the Minister of Higher Education, H.E Dr Ibrahim Hassan, accompanied the Vice President at the call and held discussions with the Bangladeshi Foreign Minister regarding bilateral cooperation in their respective sectors.
Following the call, the Vice President and delegation attended a special dinner hosted by the Bangladeshi Foreign Minister in honour of Vice President Faisal Naseem.
Vice President Faisal Naseem arrived in Bangladesh this morning for his three-day official visit, accompanied by a delegation of cabinet ministers and high-level officials from the President’s Office and the government. He was received at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka by the Bangladeshi Foreign Minister.
Earlier today, the Vice President visited the Bangabandhu Museum where he received a guided tour and signed the visitor's book. Following that, he visited the Bangladesh-Korea Technical Training Centre (BKTTC), where he was received by the Minister of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, H.E Imran Ahmad. Vice President Faisal Naseem took a guided tour of BKTTC and discussed partnerships in developing technical capacity in the Maldives, especially in the areas of healthcare and education.
