Hungarian foreign as well as trade minister Péter Szijjártó is coming to Dhaka in an official visit amid Covid-19 pandemic to take the relations to a new height.
This will be the first minister level visit to Bangladesh during the pandemic.
He will arrive at around 12.30am Thursday by a chartered flight and after participating in a bilateral meeting with his Bangladesh counterpart Dr AK Abdul Momen and completing other engagements will leave Dhaka on the same day, the foreign ministry said.
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen will receive him at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
The Hungarian minister will begin his day by visiting Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi-32 and paying tribute to the memories of the Bangladesh’s founding father and his family members who were brutally killed in 1975.
After that he will meet Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi. Foreign Minister Momen will host a lunch in honour of the visiting minister.
They will meet the press after the bilateral meeting. The state-run BTV will anchor a 20-minute interview with the Hungarian Foreign Minister.
It is expected that more than two instruments will be signed during the visit of the Hungarian Foreign Minister, the foreign ministry said.
Bangladesh has maintained friendly relations with Hungary since independence.
The central European country supported the cause of Bangladesh during the war of liberation and was one of the first countries to accord recognition.
The diplomatic relations were established as early as 29 January 1972. As a gesture of cordial and friendly relations, Hungary established her resident Mission in Dhaka in 1973. It existed until the year 1997.
The relations which could be further strengthened in the field of economy, technology and culture did not materialize after the mid 80’s mainly due to the end of cold war and also less exchange of high level political visits, according to the Bangladesh mission in Austria which is also accredited to Hungary.
“The relations took a new turn after the visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in November 2016 to attend the water summit at Budapest,” Bangladesh ambassador to Hungary Muhammad A. Muhith told Bangladesh Post.
“We (Bangladesh) value them as a good friend,” he said.
Both countries have collaboration in many sectors particularly in health and education.
“They offer 100 scholarships to young Bangladeshi students to study at Hungarian universities,” the Ambassador said.
Their collaboration in the health sector particularly with the burn and plastic surgery unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital is well-known.
A team of 35 Hungarian surgeons travelled to Dhaka to perform the complex marathon surgery to separate conjoined twins Rabeya and Rokeya last year.
They were joined at the head from a rare disorder affecting an estimated one in every five to six million births.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán during Sheikh Hasina’s visit stressed on improving business relations between Hungary and Bangladesh.
Hungarian businesses see opportunities in Bangladesh primarily in the fields of water management, agriculture, the pharmaceutical industry and educational technologies.
