Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has assured Bangladesh to support its candidature in the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.The assurance came when State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam held bilateral meeting with Foreign and International Cooperation Minister of Congo Raymond Tshibanda N’Tungamulongo in Cotonou, Benin on July 29. During the meeting, Shahriar Alam also sought support of DRC in the elections of International Telecommunicaitons Union (ITU) and the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU).In reply, the foreign minister of Congo told the state minister that they would positively consider the requests of Bangladesh, according to a message received here on Friday. Apart from this, the Bangladesh state minister for foreign affairs also held a bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister of Benin Professor Nassirou Bako Arifari.During the meeting, wide range of bilateral as well as multilateral issues was discussed. The two Ministers discussed the possibility of increasing trade, and also collaboration in the areas of agriculture and water management between Bangladesh and Benin.Foreign Minister of Benin acknowledged and appreciated the achievements of Bangladesh in the areas of flood rehabilitation, and also its success in inventing draught resistant and salinity resistant rice varieties.State Minister Shahriar Alam invited the Foreign Minister of Benin to visit Bangladesh at the earliest opportunity, and the Benin Foreign Minister accepted the invitation, mentioning that he is looking forward to visiting Bangladesh soon. State Minister, who was in Benin to attend the four-day LDC Ministerial Meeting on New Partnerships for building productive capacity in the Least Developed Countries began in Cotonou, Benin on July 28 last, sought support of Benin in different elections. State Minister for Foreign Affairs also spoke at the discussion meeting on the public-private partnerships and south-south cooperation in support of technological acquisition. At that event, he highlighted the commitment of the Government of Bangladesh to create a conducive environment for technology facilitation and transfer.He assured the meeting that Bangladesh would be ready to provide support to any international science, technology and innovation facilitation mechanism dedicated for LDCs.
