The Daily Morning Sun Online //

Chief advisor Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus urged Saudi Arabia to invest more in Bangladesh and also expressed hope for increased energy and economic cooperation to strengthen relations between the two friendly countries.

He made this call when the Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Isa Yusuf Isa Al Duhailan came to pay a courtesy call on Professor Yunus at the Chief Adviser’s office in Tejgaon of the capital on Monday (October 28). Professor Yunus said, now we are passing through a time when Saudi Arabia can give us maximum support. The chief adviser termed Bangladesh’s relationship with Saudi Arabia as ‘unique’ and ‘different’.

Professor Yunus called upon Saudi Arabia to deposit funds in the Central Bank of Bangladesh and said that such an initiative would increase liquidity support as part of economic cooperation. He also mentioned that it is a ‘good pledge for the interim government’. He urged Saudi Arabia to provide energy and petroleum products on easy terms, expand trade and invest in training Bangladeshi youth. He said, if investment is made for training, it will be possible to send more skilled and trained workers from Dhaka to Saudi Arabia.

Ambassador Al Duhailan praised the contribution of Bangladeshi expatriates in Saudi Arabia and said that if the skills of expatriate Bangladeshis are improved, they will get more salary and will be able to send more remittances to the country. Currently, about 3 million Bangladeshis are working in Saudi Arabia and every year they send billions of dollars in remittances to the country. Ambassador Al Duhailan said that Saudi Arabia issues an average of 5,000 visas per day, which are allocated to Bangladeshi immigrants and Muslim pilgrims. About five lakh Bangladeshis performed Umrah in Saudi Arabia in 2023, which is 37 percent more than the previous year.

Ambassador Al Duhailan said that his country is interested in investing more in Bangladesh and he seeks the cooperation of the Office of the Chief Adviser to facilitate the proposed Saudi investment in power and energy sector through Matarbari deep sea port and especially Akwa Power.

He conveyed congratulatory messages on behalf of King Khademul Harmain Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the Chief Adviser on the occasion of Saudi National Day.

The Saudi ambassador said, ‘My government wants to see stability in Bangladesh and, God willing, we are ready to support the Bangladesh government.’ He presented the chief adviser with the Holy Quran and a replica of Saudi Arabia’s national bird, the falcon.