Saying Bangladesh is a rising economic giant in South Asia, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said that his country was working on increasing engagement with Bangladesh in multiple sectors, including trade and investment.
Çavuşoğlu was speaking at the inauguration of a bust of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at a park in Ankara on Sunday.
The park was named after the founding father of Bangladesh by the Turkish government to honour the great leader.
He also said the economy of Bangladesh has been growing steadily over the last 10-12 years under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also said that Turkey was interested to increase the trade volume with Bangladesh to the tune of $3 billion in the next few years, now that it has crossed the $1 billion-mark.
Turkey and Bangladesh enjoy a long-standing deep-rooted relationship, and nothing can change this, he also said.
Emphasizing people-to-people contact, the foreign minister also said that high-level political visits of the heads of two governments can help take the relations between Dhaka and Ankara to newer heights.
The Turkish FM added that his country expressed its interest to invest in Bangladesh’s shipbuilding industry as well as enhance cooperation in the pharmaceuticals and ICT sectors
Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Atiqul Islam urged Turkish Foreign Minister to pursue Turkish businessmen to invest in Bangladesh as the government of Bangladesh is developing a number of export processing zones under Bepza and economic zones under Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority (Beza.)
Islam also sought cooperation of Turkish government in turning Dhaka city into a modern city with necessary civic amenities.
He said the government is constructing metro rail service and an elevated expressway to improve the communication system in Dhaka keeping greenery of the city.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen has said the Bangladesh government was working on multiple fronts to materialize the dream of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to build “Sonar Bangla” as guided by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Momen also said they believe the dream of building “Sonar Bangla” will be implemented by 2041 as the country is on the right track of achieving that goal.