Bangladesh High Commission

London

News Brief

London, 5 March 2018

Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang arrived in Dhaka yesterday on a three-day state visit to Bangladesh. President Md. Abdul Hamid received the Vietnamese leader at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. During his visit, the two sides are expected to exchange ideas on regional and international issues of mutual concern.Tran Dai Quang came with a 100 business representatives from his country to explore trade and investment potentials in Bangladesh.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said, Bangladesh needs to make its manpower human resources to carry forward the country's development in every sphere. So, the government has attached utmost importance to science and technological research. The PM said this while addressing a function marking giving away Bangabandhu Fellowship for scientific research at Osmani Memorial Auditorium in Dhaka yesterday.

Visiting Deputy Assistant to the US President and Senior Director for South and Central Asia at the National Security Council Lisa Curtis has said, the USA will remain with and stand by Bangladesh in resolving the Rohingya crisis. She made the vow while holding a meeting with Foreign Minister      A H Mahmood Ali at the latter's office yesterday. During the meeting, Curtis deeply appreciated Bangladesh's role in sheltering the persecuted Rohingyas and providing necessary support to them. Bangladesh could be a model in the world on how to deal with such humanitarian situations, she mentioned. In this connection, the Foreign Minister urged the US side to continue playing a strong role at the UNSC.

India wants to extend support to Bangladesh to help the Rohingyas during the upcoming cyclone season.  Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Harsh Vardhan Shringla expressed the desire when he called on Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya at the secretariat yesterday. 

The government will sue the Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation of the Philippines by April for its role in the cyber heist of $81 million from the central bank's account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Finance Minister AMA Muhith told reporters yesterday after an inter-ministerial meeting on the matter. Law Minister Anisul Huq and Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal were present at the meeting.

The Health Ministry will recruit 10,000 physicians for posting them to district and upazila levels before the parliamentary elections this year. Health Minister Mohammed Nasim said this at a meeting with the press yesterday. He said, 5000 doctors will be recruited in two to three months through special BCS Examination and 5,000 more doctors would be recruited within the tenure of the government. The ministry will also recruit 40,000 third and fourth-class employees at public hospitals by this year, the Minister added.

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu has said, the 9th Wage Board Award would be announced in September, 2018. It would synchronies with the five-year cycle of the earlier Wage Boards, he told journalists after a meeting with stakeholders at the Press Institute of Bangladesh yesterday. He also said, the economic viability of the media also came up for discussion and the Information Ministry would make recommendations, accordingly, to the Finance Ministry for a special allocation for the media in the upcoming budget.

Professor Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, who is now undergoing treatment at the CMH in Dhaka after he came under attack on his university campus in Sylhet on Saturday, is now out of danger. ISPR in a message briefing his health condition informed this yesterday. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said, there is no lack in the security of eminent Prof Dr Zafar Iqbal, police have already arrested an attacker. The motive of the attack will be known soon.

The Roads and Highways Department has won South Asia Procurement Innovation Award in the South Asia Regional Public Procurement Conference in New Delhi recently. World Bank, ADB and IDB co-sponsored the event.

Press Wing