Bangladeshi Prime Minister scheduled for official visit to Maldives

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to make an official visit to Maldives later this year. 

The upcoming visit by PM Sheikh Hasina was announced by Bangladeshi Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, who paid a courtesy call of Maldivian Vice President Faisal Naseem at the President’s Office on Sunday morning. 

During the call, Faisal and Momen discussed the close bilateral ties between Maldives and Bangladesh, emphasizing that the numerous interactions between the two countries' top officials this year have helped to improve relations.  

Continuing the conversation, they explored avenues of cooperation between the two countries, ahead of an official visit to the Maldives later this year by PM Sheikh Hasina. 

Momen expressed delight over the reopening of Maldives’ borders and restarting the tourism sector - which was shut down last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

He also commended Maldives’ determination to vaccinate the entire population, regardless of nationality. 

Speaking about his recent official visit to Bangladesh, Faisal said that seeking solutions to the need for human resources in the health sector had been a key priority of his visit, as the need for healthcare staff had considerably increased with the decentralization efforts of the Maldivian administration. He said that the decentralization efforts are focused on bringing services closer to the people. 

The two also engaged in discussions on enhancing regional trade and connectivity, economic cooperation, tourism and agriculture.  

During the call, Momen extended an invitation to Maldives to send foreign service staff for training in their newly established Foreign Service Institute. Maldives’ Foreign Secretary, Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed, accepted the invitation, stating that President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih had recently ratified the Maldives Foreign Service Act, which paves way for a Foreign Service Institute to be established under the Foreign Ministry. 

Ending the call, Faisal expressed gratitude for the generous hospitality received by the Maldivian delegation during his recent visit to Bangladesh.  

Both he and Momen affirmed their mutual commitment to ensuring that Maldives-Bangladesh relations always remain strong.