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Bangladesh to construct modern building for BIMSTEC


Published : 01 Jan 2020 09:39 PM | Updated : 02 Sep 2020 05:10 PM

Bangladesh will construct a multi-storied modern building for the BIMSTEC Secretariat in Dhaka, state minister for foreign affairs Md Shahriar Alam said. The new building will be constructed at the present location of the Secretariat in Gulshan, the Secretariat of the seven countries grouping said in a statement.

The state minister informed this to BIMSTEC Secretary General Ambassador M. Shahidul Islam when he called on him at the foreign ministry. Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand are the members of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) which was established through the adoption of Bangkok Declaration in June 1997.

The aim was to promote cooperation in the areas of trade, investment, technological exchange and other interrelated areas and contribute to peace, progress and prosperity in the region. Shahidul Islam, an officer of Bangladesh Foreign Service, was nominated by the government to serve as the Secretary General of BIMSTEC for three years.

The permanent Secretariat was established in Dhaka in 2014. The 4th BIMSTEC Summit held in Kathmandu in 2018 decided to increase the number of Directors of the BIMSTEC Secretariat to seven from existing three. Bangladesh as the host country of the BIMSTEC Secretariat has agreed to provide additional office space to cope with the expansion of the Secretariat.

The Secretary General welcomed the decision of the government of Bangladesh to provide larger office building for the BIMSTEC Secretariat. He also appreciated the contribution of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in mainstreaming sustainable development in the activities of BIMSTEC.

The Secretary General thanked Bangladesh for leading two important sectors of BIMSTEC cooperation, namely trade and investment and climate change. He encouraged Bangladesh to play a more proactive role in completing the ongoing BIMSTEC FTA negotiations. The State Minister said that Bangladesh will host more BIMSTEC related meetings and events in order to generate momentum in all important areas of cooperation.

He assured the Secretary General of Bangladesh government’s continued support for regional cooperation under the umbrella of BIMSTEC.