Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has picked Prof Dr AK Abdul Momen, as the new Foreign Minister in her cabinet replacing outgoing Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali amid Bangladesh's growing importance in the global arena.
Dr Momen, the younger brother of outgoing Finance Minister AMA Muhith, was elected from the Sylhet 1 constituency in the December 30 election.
He served as Ambassador and Bangladesh Permanent Representative to the UN in New York with concurrent accreditation to the Republic of Chile and the Republic of Peru.
Momen has a PhD in economics from the Northeastern University, Boston.
He also has an MPA in public administration, public policy and international economics from the Harvard University (Cambridge), LLB in Lawand MA in development economics and a BA (Honours) from the University of Dhaka.
In 1998, he became an economic adviser at the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF).
He taught economics and business administration at Merrimack College, Salem State College, Northeastern University, the University of Massachusetts, and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
He became a civil servant, serving as private secretary to the minister of Rural Development, Local Government and Cooperatives from 1973 to 1974, and minister of Trade and Commerce, and Mineral Resources and Petroleum from 1974 to 1975.
Momen was also the director of Office of the President's Advisor on Trade and Commerce from 1976 to 1978.
He served as president of the Unicef Executive Board at the international level in 2010 and was also the vice president and acting president of the 67th United Nations General Assembly.
