Biman to fly Dhaka-Male

Bangladesh and the Maldives would have direct flights and commercial shipping links as the two South Asian countries see a huge scope of boosting trade, tourism, and cooperation on human resource development.

"The good news is the prime minister [Sheikh Hasina] has declared that Biman Bangladesh Airlines will start its Dhaka-Malé operations very soon. We are expecting another good news that we can begin a direct shipping line from Chattogram to Malé," said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen.

Officials said the move would drastically reduce the cost of travel and transport of commodities and thereby improve competitiveness of businesses.

This was disclosed at a joint press conference by Momen and his Maldives counterpart Abdulla Shahid at the InterContinental Dhaka yesterday, following a meeting between Hasina and the Maldives President Ibrahim Solih at the Prime Minister's Office.

During his talks with the Bangladesh PM, Solih announced that they would protect the rights of the Bangladeshi migrants working in the Maldives and that they were being covered under the Covid-19 vaccination campaign free of cost.

"We have a very cordial relationship with the Maldives. We have achieved a lot during the visit of the president," Momen said.

The Maldives president, his wife Madam Fazna Ahmed, Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid and Economic Development Minister Fayyaz Ismail arrived in Dhaka on Wednesday to join the twin celebrations of Mujib Borsho and golden jubilee of Bangladesh's independence.

Solih also attended a dinner hosted by President Abdul Hamid before leaving for Malé last night.

Momen said the two countries signed four MoUs on the Establishment of Joint Commission for Comprehensive Cooperation; Establishment of Bilateral Foreign Office Consultations; Cooperation in the Field of Fisheries and Pelagic Fishing; and Cultural Exchange Programme for 2022-25.

"These instruments are expected to pave the way for further strengthening the relations between the two countries," he said.

The minister said presently, the trade between the two countries is very limited but there are huge scopes. Bangladesh can export food, vegetables as well as medicines to the Maldives. Besides, the two countries can also cooperate with each other in the sectors of tourism and marine fisheries.

RMG, leather, IT services and processed food can be very important items of export, officials said.

Abdulla Shahid said Bangladesh is a land of enormous resources, but the problem is lack of connectivity.

"If we have strong connectivity, trade can grow greatly. We welcome two million tourists every year. It is a high-end consumption market. For economic activities, more connectivity is a welcome declaration," he said.

The Maldives is home to some 100,000 Bangladeshi migrants, but many of them are undocumented. Asked about it, Shahid said his country was doing everything to ensure their protection so that none can take any undue advantage of their irregular status.

Bangladesh requested the Maldives rapid regularisation of the migrant workers there and expressed its readiness to meet further need for skilled human resources in the Maldives.

Abdulla Shahid said the Maldives will support Bangladesh on the question of the Rohingya justice and repatriation in the international forums. Also, both the countries will work together on climate change.

According to a joint communique, the two governments agreed to regularly hold commerce secretary-level meetings to address bilateral trade issues in detail. Both the sides agreed to expedite the finalisation of the proposed Agreement on Customs Cooperation and the signing of the Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation and protect investments.

Bangladesh reiterated its policy of extending continued support towards development of human resources in the Maldives in a variety of fields, and offer training to the Maldivian peacekeepers in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh confirmed its support to the Maldives foreign minister's candidature for the UNGA presidency in 2021.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina accepted President Solih's invitation to pay a visit to the Maldives at a mutual convenience.

Solih commended Hasina's leadership and success and the vision of transforming Bangladesh into a developed country by 2041.