Saudi Crown Prince invites PM Tarique Rahman to visit Saudi Arabia
Riyadh looks to expand cooperation with Dhaka across sectors
Highlights
- Bilateral cooperation extends across multiple economic sectors
- Riyadh seeks Bangladeshi skilled workers and investment
- Saudi Arabia remains crucial to Bangladesh's diplomacy
Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has invited Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Dr Abdullah Zafar H Bin Abiyah handed over the invitation letter to Tarique Rahman at the Prime Minister's Office in the Secretariat today (17 August), according to the Prime Minister's Press Wing.
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The invitation comes as Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia seek to deepen bilateral cooperation, with ties extending beyond religious and people-to-people relations to labour migration, trade, investment, energy and economic cooperation.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia expressed interest in investing in various sectors in Bangladesh and recruiting more skilled Bangladeshi workers.
Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia established formal diplomatic relations in 1975, several years after Bangladesh gained independence.
The relationship, initially centred on Hajj, religious exchanges and manpower exports, has gradually broadened to include economic and diplomatic cooperation.
Saudi Arabia remains one of Bangladesh's key labour markets, with a large number of Bangladeshi workers employed there.
Remittances from Bangladeshi workers in Saudi Arabia are an important source of the country's foreign exchange earnings.
Saudi Arabia is also a major destination for Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims, while religious and cultural exchanges between the two countries have continued for decades.
As a result, relations with Riyadh remain significant for Bangladesh's foreign policy and economic diplomacy.
