UNESCO's executive board clears Dhaka-based International Mother Language Institute for approval

For the first time, Bangladesh is going to host an UN-affiliated institute on its soil.

The 197th session of the UNESCO Executive Board has approved Bangladesh's proposal to grant International Mother Language Institute (IMLI) of Dhaka the status of Category II Institute of UNESCO, said a press statement by Hazrat Ali Khan, head of chancery in Bangladesh's embassy in Paris.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) is based in Paris.

Khan said the UNESCO executive board had observed in its recently-held 197th session: "Given the linguistic diversity of the Asia-Pacific region and the Institute's unique emphasis on mother tongue and multilingual education, IMLI will serve as a hub of knowledge and research and contribute towards new forms of learning and mother tongue education in the region and throughout the world".

The boad will now communicate its decision for approval by the UNESCO General Conference scheduled in November.

An agreement between the UNESCO and Bangladesh government on the issue is expected to be signed at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris in the presence of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury, Senior Secretary and leader of the Bangladesh delegation to the 197th Session of UNESCO Executive Board, recalled PM Hasina's "personal initiative and care" in setting up and developing the IMLI as a centre of excellence, the press statement said.