German parliamentary delegation to visit Bangladesh

A German parliamentary delegation will visit Bangladesh from Saturday to assess the factory safety and workers’ rights in the country, a year after the Rana Plaza building collapsed.

The German embassy in Dhaka said the seven-member delegation of the German Parliamentary Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development would meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and other political leaders.

During their stay, they would also assess the initiatives taken so far to improve the health and safety standards for the Bangladeshi workers.

They will travel to Savar to visit survivors of the worst-ever building collapse at the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP), which received German funds to rehabilitate them.

They will also visit a couple of factories in Savar to get an impression of the working conditions of Bangladeshi workers, according to a media release.

Besides, the MPs will visit two projects that focus on the inclusion of street children and victims of acid attacks to demonstrate their solidarity with those vulnerable groups in need of support.

Dagmar Woehrl, who has been the Chair of the Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development since 2009, will lead the delegation.

The other members of the delegation would be Juergen Klimke, Frank Heinrich, Stefan Rebmann, Gabi Weber, Niema Movassat and Uwe Kekeritz.

Before leaving Bangladesh on Apr 30, they would brief media about the outcome of the visit.