Commonwealth chief Botchwey meets CEC Nasir Uddin

A six-member Commonwealth delegation attends the talks

Commonwealth Secretary General Shirley Botchwey has held talks with Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin as preparations intensify for Bangladesh's upcoming parliamentary elections and referendum.

The meeting took place at the Election Commission (EC) headquarters in Dhaka’s Agargaon on Sunday, according to EC spokesman Ruhul Amin Malik.

A six-member Commonwealth delegation attended the talks, along with Election Commission Secretary Akhtar Ahmed.

It follows an earlier visit on Oct 26 by a Commonwealth pre-election assessment team led by Linford Andrews, an advisor to the organisation’s Electoral Support branch.

Botchwey is currently on a four-day visit to Bangladesh. Ahead of the February polls, she is expected to meet a range of political and institutional stakeholders.

Officials said her discussions are likely to cover areas of shared interest, including cooperation on peace, stability, democratic processes, good governance and economic development.

The secretary general last visited Dhaka in June, when she met Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus.