Bangladesh and China today signed 13 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for bilateral cooperation in various areas coinciding with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The MoUs were signed by Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman, Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapon, and senior Bangladesh foreign ministry officials with respective Chinese authorities.
Areas of Cooperation
PMO spokesman Mahdi Amin said the MoUs covered areas related to investment, green development, education, media, culture, and language. The signing of the deals followed the two prime ministers meeting at the Great Hall, where discussions were also held regarding a Joint Action Plan.
Ceremonial Welcome
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was accorded a warm reception after he reached the meeting venue in a ceremonial motorcade from Diaoyutai State Guesthouse. A red-carpet was rolled as the Chinese premier cordially welcomed Tarique Rahman at the Great Hall and took him to a specially decorated platform walking on the carpet holding his hand. A smartly turned-out contingent of the Chinese Armed Forces presented a guard of honour to the Bangladesh leader, and the ceremony was marked by playing of national anthems of both the countries. The two Prime Ministers received the salute and inspected the guard while the ceremony was also featured by a gun salute for Bangladesh premier.
Key Discussions
Amin said the two premiers’ discussion focused on increased Bangladesh’s export capacity, expanded exports to China, and various areas of development cooperation. They also discussed concessional Chinese loans with reduced interest rates and extended grace periods. The MoUs were inked under the Global Development Initiative, covering areas such as healthcare, education, and overall alignment-related manpower and capacity development programmes.
Additional Agreements
One of the MoUs was concluded regarding the export of Bangladesh’s national fruit, jackfruit, to China. Another two paved the way for introducing Mandarin language education and incorporating Mandarin into Bangladesh’s school curriculum and to strengthen cooperation in technical and vocational education. Four MoUs were signed to enhance collaboration between the two countries in the media sector, advancing cooperation through think-tank forums, and strengthening partnerships between state-owned television channels and newspapers.
Investment and Economic Zones
Referring to investment-related deals, Amin said, in addition to agreements with the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), separate MoUs were inked on increasing investment in Anwara, Chattogram, and Mongla. Through economic zones, the aim is to attract new Chinese factories and production facilities to Bangladesh and generate employment opportunities.
Rohingya Crisis
PM’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Humaiun Kobir told the media briefing that Tarique Rahman raised the issue of the Rohingya crisis during the talks, and China assured Bangladesh of its support on the matter.
