UNB, Dhaka :
Bangladesh has urged Germany to put pressure on Myanmar so that they can start taking back their nationals noting that not a single Rohingya had been repatriated over the last two years.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen made the call during his meeting with German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Heiko Maas in Berlin on Friday.
The Foreign Minister conveyed his German counterpart that Myanmar agreed to take back their nationals from Bangladesh but till today they have not taken back a single Rohingya, a senior Foreign Ministry official told UNB after the meeting.
He asked German Foreign Minister Maas to put pressure on Myanmar so that they take back their nationals and sought steps for creating a conducive environment for the return of the Rohingyas who were forcibly displaced from their homeland.
In the maiden bilateral meeting with his German counterpart, Dr Momen referred to the four points proposed by Bangladesh Prime Minister in 74th UNGA last month, and urged German government and the international community to take effective steps to ensure that the Myanmar government takes back Rohingyas with safety, security and dignity in a sustainable manner.
He also sought Germany’s support in ensuring accountability for the atrocities committed against Rohingyas, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
German Foreign Minister deeply appreciated the humanitarian position of Bangladesh in providing shelter to Rohingyas.
He commended the economic and social development achieved by Bangladesh, and assured of support of Germany to Bangladesh in addressing the challenges of climate change.
Bangladesh Ambassador to Germany Imtiaz Ahmed was also present at the meeting.
Bangladesh is hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas and most of them entered Bangladesh since August 25, 2017 amid military crackdown against Rohingyas in Rakhine State.
On Brexit issue, Dr Momen said Bangladesh does not want to see any uncertainty in the developed countries.
He said uncertainty will affect the emerging and small economies who are actively involved with the UK and European Union (EU).
The Foreign Minister invited the German car manufacturers like Mercedes, BMW and Volkswagen to invest in Bangladesh and set up their assembly plants in the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpanagar in Chattogram.
He explained about the Special Economic Zones set up by the government of Bangladesh in different places, and the presence of strong middle class, purchasing power is growing in Bangladesh. Apart from strong domestic market in Bangladesh, the Foreign Minister said the German investors can take advantage of connectivity with big market of China and India and ASEAN.
German investment was sought particularly in infrastructure development, IT, skill development of young force, renewable energy, capacity building of SMEs and other areas.
The two sides discussed ways effectively look into the GSP plus facility for Bangladesh after EBA expires due to Bangladesh’s graduation from the LDC club.
Earlier, the Foreign Minister addressed the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade (BWA) in Berlin on Thursday and highlighted the investment opportunities on a win-win basis.
He called upon the German businesses to invest in Bangladesh taking advantage of business-friendly policies and environment in Bangladesh.
During the meeting, Dr. Momen also highlighted the success story of Bangladesh as the development miracle of the world, and called for Germen businesses to invest in Bangladesh, taking advantage of the country’s demographic dividend and lucrative investment promotion packages for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
German development cooperation for Bangladesh and existing strong business relations between the two countries were noted at the meeting, including the implementation of e-passport by German company Veridos, and involvement of Siemens AG Germany in energy sector.
While talking about global issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Momen flagged the Culture of Peace resolution pursued and promoted by Bangladesh at UN, and suggested that through practice of peaceful attitude and tolerance by states, most of the crises can be averted.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister also had meeting with Dr Gerd Mueller, German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development. During the meeting, Dr. Momen appreciated the development assistance of Germany to Bangladesh in areas like rural development, primary education, private sector development, renewable energy, climate effect and so on.
Terming Bangladesh’s Readymade Garment Factories safe, green, environment friendly Dr Momen said Bangladesh has achieved tremendous development in labour safety and rights issues.
Dr. Rubana Haque, President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) participated at the meeting, and it was agreed in the meeting that Bangladesh RMG sector would join at the “Green Button” initiative of the German Government to promote environment and socially conscious textile products.
German Economic Cooperation and Development Minister was highly appreciative of the decision of Bangladesh to join the Green Button scheme.
Bangladesh has urged Germany to put pressure on Myanmar so that they can start taking back their nationals noting that not a single Rohingya had been repatriated over the last two years.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen made the call during his meeting with German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Heiko Maas in Berlin on Friday.
The Foreign Minister conveyed his German counterpart that Myanmar agreed to take back their nationals from Bangladesh but till today they have not taken back a single Rohingya, a senior Foreign Ministry official told UNB after the meeting.
He asked German Foreign Minister Maas to put pressure on Myanmar so that they take back their nationals and sought steps for creating a conducive environment for the return of the Rohingyas who were forcibly displaced from their homeland.
In the maiden bilateral meeting with his German counterpart, Dr Momen referred to the four points proposed by Bangladesh Prime Minister in 74th UNGA last month, and urged German government and the international community to take effective steps to ensure that the Myanmar government takes back Rohingyas with safety, security and dignity in a sustainable manner.
He also sought Germany’s support in ensuring accountability for the atrocities committed against Rohingyas, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
German Foreign Minister deeply appreciated the humanitarian position of Bangladesh in providing shelter to Rohingyas.
He commended the economic and social development achieved by Bangladesh, and assured of support of Germany to Bangladesh in addressing the challenges of climate change.
Bangladesh Ambassador to Germany Imtiaz Ahmed was also present at the meeting.
Bangladesh is hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas and most of them entered Bangladesh since August 25, 2017 amid military crackdown against Rohingyas in Rakhine State.
On Brexit issue, Dr Momen said Bangladesh does not want to see any uncertainty in the developed countries.
He said uncertainty will affect the emerging and small economies who are actively involved with the UK and European Union (EU).
The Foreign Minister invited the German car manufacturers like Mercedes, BMW and Volkswagen to invest in Bangladesh and set up their assembly plants in the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpanagar in Chattogram.
He explained about the Special Economic Zones set up by the government of Bangladesh in different places, and the presence of strong middle class, purchasing power is growing in Bangladesh. Apart from strong domestic market in Bangladesh, the Foreign Minister said the German investors can take advantage of connectivity with big market of China and India and ASEAN.
German investment was sought particularly in infrastructure development, IT, skill development of young force, renewable energy, capacity building of SMEs and other areas.
The two sides discussed ways effectively look into the GSP plus facility for Bangladesh after EBA expires due to Bangladesh’s graduation from the LDC club.
Earlier, the Foreign Minister addressed the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade (BWA) in Berlin on Thursday and highlighted the investment opportunities on a win-win basis.
He called upon the German businesses to invest in Bangladesh taking advantage of business-friendly policies and environment in Bangladesh.
During the meeting, Dr. Momen also highlighted the success story of Bangladesh as the development miracle of the world, and called for Germen businesses to invest in Bangladesh, taking advantage of the country’s demographic dividend and lucrative investment promotion packages for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
German development cooperation for Bangladesh and existing strong business relations between the two countries were noted at the meeting, including the implementation of e-passport by German company Veridos, and involvement of Siemens AG Germany in energy sector.
While talking about global issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Momen flagged the Culture of Peace resolution pursued and promoted by Bangladesh at UN, and suggested that through practice of peaceful attitude and tolerance by states, most of the crises can be averted.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister also had meeting with Dr Gerd Mueller, German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development. During the meeting, Dr. Momen appreciated the development assistance of Germany to Bangladesh in areas like rural development, primary education, private sector development, renewable energy, climate effect and so on.
Terming Bangladesh’s Readymade Garment Factories safe, green, environment friendly Dr Momen said Bangladesh has achieved tremendous development in labour safety and rights issues.
Dr. Rubana Haque, President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) participated at the meeting, and it was agreed in the meeting that Bangladesh RMG sector would join at the “Green Button” initiative of the German Government to promote environment and socially conscious textile products.
German Economic Cooperation and Development Minister was highly appreciative of the decision of Bangladesh to join the Green Button scheme.
