DHAKA, Oct 10, 2021 (BSS) - Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi today termed China as a "great friend" of Bangladesh and emphasized on enhancing bilateral relations between Bangladesh and China, especially boosting the trade relations in the days to come.
"There is no doubt that China is a great friend of Bangladesh and they play a big role in our development efforts," he said.
The Commerce Minister was addressing the "BCCCI-ERF Best Reporting Award on Bilateral Relationship between Bangladesh and China" as the chief guest held at the ERF auditorium in the capital's Paltan area.
Organized jointly by the Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCCI) and the Economic Reporters' Forum (ERF), Chinese Ambassador to Dhaka Li Jiming spoke on the occasion virtually as the special guest.
Chaired by BCCCI President Gazi Golam Murtoza, its secretary general Md Shahjahan Mridha Benu and ERF general secretary SM Rashidul Islam gave the welcome remarks while ERF President Sharmeen Rinvy gave the vote of thanks.
BCCCI joint secretary general Al Mamun Mridha moderated the function and informed that they would continue to sponsor the award programme in future and also would provide fellowships to ERF members.
Mentioning that trade and commerce in recent times play a very significant role in global politics, the Commerce Minister said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina always directs the Bangladesh missions abroad to put priority on enhancing trade and commerce relations with different countries and thus boosting exports.
Tipu said China is the largest supplier of machineries and goods to Bangladesh while it is also Bangladesh's largest trade partner.
He also cited that there could have been a difficult time for the Bangladeshi RMG sector had there been no raw material coming from China in due time during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Commerce Minister noted that Bangladesh enjoys almost half of its global financial relationship with China and it really means a lot for the country.
Chinese Ambassador in Dhaka Li Jiming said that Bangladesh has made remarkable achievements in economic development and also in different socio-economic fields over the last 50 years while the country attained the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ahead of the schedule.
"I'm also sure that Bangladesh is going to graduate from the LDCs by 2026 and also could be among the top 25 economies by 2030," he added.
Referring to the issue of development cooperation, Jiming said that everyone should keep in mind the new industrial revolution which is gaining momentum with the emergence of new business models and digital economy.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has provided new opportunities to leap frog developing countries like Bangladesh," he said.
The Chinese Ambassador said that Chinese President Xi Jinping during his address at the just concluded 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) had proposed a global development initiative which would pursue stronger, greener and healthier global development.
"I hope that Bangladesh will actively support this global development initiative ....global development initiative will also be the guideline of future Bangladesh-China trade and economic relationship," he noted.
The Chinese Ambassador said Bangladesh is an important participant of the Belt and Road Initiative and it was also the first country in South Asia to join this initiative.
Jiming also invited Bangladeshi businesses and the Commerce Minister to take part in the upcoming China International Import Exposition and the Canton Fair to be held in China.
Later, the Commerce Minister along with the distinguished guests distributed awards to 10 best reporters in 10 different categories. Each of the recipients received a crest, a certificate and a cheque of Taka 50,000.
The award recipients are: 1 Category: Bilateral business relations: Abul Kashem, The Business Standard; 2 Category: Investment of Chinese state-run companies in major infrastructure projects in Bangladesh, Shakhawat Hossain: The New Age; 3 Category: Chinese private sector investment in Bangladesh: Ahsan Habib; The Daily Star; 4 Category: Bangladesh's private sector's growing ties with Chinese companies: Mousumi Islam, Alokito Bangladesh; 5 Category: Life of Chinese investors and their workers in Bangladesh and the small businesses they have set up here: Jasim Uddin Haroon, The Financial Express; 6 Category; Challenges facing booming Bangladesh-China relationships: Late AZM Anas, The Financial Express: 7 Category: China as a destination of higher education for thousands of Bangladeshi students: Babu Kamruzzaman, News24; 8 Category: Bangladesh-China private and public sector ties in the health sector, especially in the coronavirus pandemic and post pandemic scenarios: Alamgir Hossain, Jamuna Television; 9 Category: Bangladesh-China private and public sector ties in tourism, hospitality and cultural sectors: Tahidul Islam, Gazi Television; 10 Category: geo-economics/economic diplomacy, particularly focusing Bangladesh and China: Masuduzzaman Robin, Jamuna Television.