Bangladesh-Switzerland bilateral political consultation on Mar 1

The second round of the Bangladesh-Switzerland foreign office consultation, also known as bilateral political consultation, is going to be held on Mar 1 in Dhaka.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 26 Feb 2015, 01:35 PM
Updated : 26 Feb 2015, 01:35 PM

Assistant State Secretary of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Johannes Matyassy and Additional Secretary (bilateral) of Bangladesh’s foreign ministry Mizanur Rahman will lead their sides.

The Swiss delegation will arrive in Dhaka on Friday, the Swiss embassy in Dhaka says.

Apart from reviewing the current status of bilateral  relations, the two countries will discuss ways to further strengthen economic, investment, development and cultural cooperation during the consultations.

A number of new areas of possible cooperation, such as renewable energy, will be explored.

The two sides will exchange views on human rights and issues of regional and international importance.

Ambassador Matyassy, during  his four-day stay, will also meet  Speaker Shirin  Sharmin  Chaudhury, Foreign  Minister  Abul  Hassan  Mahmood  Ali  and Foreign  Secretary Md Shahidul Haque.

He will also have meetings with the representatives of civil society and the business community, according to a Swiss embassy statement.

He will visit  project  areas  of  the  “Community  Based  Climate  Adaptation  by  Coastal Afforestation” project in Barguna, which is co-funded by the Swiss government.

Switzerland and Bangladesh enjoy “excellent” bilateral relations. Bangladesh is “a priority country” for the Swiss development cooperation.

Trade between the countries is also growing “rapidly”, the Swiss embassy says. Cultural exchanges between the two countries are also “increasing”.

The first round of the consultation took place in 2013.