Swedish minister coming Monday

Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation Isabella Lövin is coming to Dhaka on Monday.

This is her first visit after assuming charge in early October.

The Swedish embassy in Dhaka says she will garner Swedish support for climate-related work in Bangladesh and launch the new Swedish Strategy for Development Cooperation for 2014-2020.

The embassy said the launch of the strategy indicated Sweden’s intention to “continue its excellent relations with and long-term support to Bangladesh”.

The strategy focuses on support to four main areas – good governance, inclusive growth, health and environment, and climate change, and intends to support government priorities in its five-year plan.

During her three-day visit, Lövin will meet ministers, senior officials, civil society representatives, and people from the private sector.

She will visit development projects funded by Sweden and make a field visit to Khulna division to study the initiatives taken for climate-change adaption.

Lövin belongs to the Green Party, which is part of the coalition government with the Social Democratic Party that came to power after the general September elections.

She is a journalist by profession, and has worked as a member of the European Union parliament and written a much acclaimed book on the environmental condition of the sea, particularly the problem of over-fishing.

Sweden is a development partner and funds various socio-economic development projects since Bangladesh’s independence in 1971.

The main areas of support have been the health and education sectors, two fields where Bangladesh has shown some progress.

The embassy said they would increase support to climate-change adaption to climate change adaptation, a crucial issue for Bangladesh.