Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's first trip to the UN General Assembly as head of government was a busy one. Over four days in New York he held 30 official engagements, including bilateral meetings with 11 countries and eight events linked to the Assembly.
Development partners
On 22 September the Prime Minister met World Bank Group President Ajay Banga at UN Headquarters. The two discussed Bangladesh's development priorities and economic progress, and ways to widen the World Bank's support for national projects. Earlier that day he attended a welcome breakfast hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
Investors and trade
At a breakfast meeting with JPMorgan Chase investors, the Prime Minister presented investment opportunities across different sectors of Bangladesh's economy. His bilateral talks with leaders and ministers from Turkey, Thailand, Bhutan, Croatia and other countries covered trade, overseas employment, energy security and cooperation in the mineral sector.
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates each invited the Prime Minister for future visits, a sign of warming ties with the Gulf, home to millions of Bangladeshi workers.
Health and women's leadership
In his address to the Assembly on 24 September, delivered in Bengali, the Prime Minister called for conflicts to be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy, and spoke about plans to recruit 100,000 additional health workers at home. Dr. Zubaida Rahman took part in eight high-level engagements, including the UN Platform of Women Leaders and events on maternal health and midwifery.
The Prime Minister landed back in Dhaka on the morning of 27 September.
