The Golden Jubilee of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Bahrain will be celebrated on June 6. To mark this momentous occasion, Kristian Harrison sat down with the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of Bangladesh, Mr. A.K.M. Mohiuddin Kayes, and discussed the last 50 years of co-operation whilst looking ahead to strengthening steadfast bonds in the coming years. What is the history of cooperation between Bangladesh and Bahrain, and what are the key areas of this relationship? Bahrain was the first GCC country to establish diplomatic relations with Bangladesh on June 6, 1974 shortly after a meeting between the late Emir of Bahrain, Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and our Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during the 1974 OIC Summit. The two brotherly nations are continuing to maintain excellent ties based on mutual trust and shared values under the able leadership of our Honourable Prime Minister, HE Sheikh Hasina and HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The key areas of our cooperation are manpower, trade and commerce, agriculture, civil aviation, culture, people-to-people contact and more. How does the Bangladesh Embassy in Bahrain support the Bangladeshi diaspora residing in Bahrain? Since the Embassy’s establishment in 1983, we have been providing various consular as well as labourwelfare related services to the Bangladeshi nationals residing in the Kingdom in addition to seeking ways to further strengthen our diplomatic and economic ties with Bahrain. Most recently, during my tenure, we introduced free medical treatment services and more than 10,000 Bangladeshis benefited from this service so far. We also started providing free weekly legal consultations with Bahraini lawyers to ensure our citizens’ safety and rights. Moreover, we periodically organise mobile consular camps to make our services more accessible to our people, and we also began organising awareness-raising seminars in collaboration with various local ministries. I am also very happy to announce that we have commenced the construction of a Bangladesh School building in A’ali under the name of our Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, to provide quality education at an affordable price. Here, we would like to extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation to HM King Hamad for graciously donating the school plot and we also convey our heartfelt gratitude to HE Sheikh Hasina for funding the school building construction project. HIGHLIGHTING 50 YEARS OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS interview 18 June 2024 Bahrainthismonth.com
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