Building regional connectivity is a top priority for Bangladesh: Momen

Bangladesh always eyes to develop strong connectivity with neighbours and cooperation among regional countries can help nations achieve economic development as well as overcome challenges.  

To this end, Bangladesh has been playing a leading role to invigorate the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec) to connect itself with Bimstec countries and also with the Asean nations, said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at an international conference titled "Central and South Asia: Regional Connectivity, Challenges and Opportunities" held in Tashkent of Uzbekistan on Friday, reads a media statement. 

Bangladesh is also trying to engage itself in various connectivity projects through road, rail, and sea routes with neighbouring countries, said Momen illustrating that Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and India signed a landmark Motor Vehicles Agreement in 2015 for sub-regional connectivity. 

The minister also referred to the long-standing common cultural and civil bonds of the Central and South Asian regions which serve as the foundation for people-to-people relations through education, tourism and cultural exchange and can be established both by road and air.

 He thanked the Uzbek president for inviting Bangladesh to the conference and noted that this conference has been organised at a time when the world needs coordinated efforts to overcome the challenges created by the Covid-19 pandemic.

 Momen mentioned that bilateral agreements like trade facilitation, avoidance of double taxation, visa support and other trade-friendly measures would be the ground to ease and expedite the cooperation among the nations that participated in the conference.

 UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and foreign ministers of the participating states also spoke on the session.