The Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina and the UAE Minister of State for Food Security Mariam Hareb Almheiri have discussed ways to boost bilateral cooperation in the areas of research and development, capacity-building, technology transfer, knowledge exchange and food security.

During her visit to Bangladesh, Almheiri described the UAE-Bangladesh relations as distinct and highlighted the joint work to strengthen them.

The Bangladeshi Prime Minister called on Emirati businessmen to invest in her country in the manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture, food preservation sector, among others. Almheiri, in turn, expressed the UAE’s desire to import food from Bangladesh at competitive prices. The UAE official attended a luncheon hosted by Shahriar Alam, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh, in her honour and members of the accompanying delegation. Minister Almheiri also met with Dr. Abdur Razzak Mahmud Hossain, Bangladeshi Agriculture Minister; Shadhan Chandra Magumdar, Minister of Food; Ashraf Ali Khan Khasru, Minister of State of Fisheries and Livestock, in the presence of heads of departments and institutions affiliated to these ministries.

During the meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, the two sides discussed the experiences of both countries in ensuring food security, stressing the necessity of research and development, reducing food waste, increasing food intake, promoting community awareness, adopting technology for food safety and security, and expressing interest in joint venture initiatives in the public and private sectors.

While the meeting with the Minister of Food, both parties agreed to work more broadly in the field of capacity building, awareness-raising, knowledge and exchange of technology for food preservation, processing and distribution, stressing the need to trade more Halal food between the two countries.

WAM