Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has reached Dhaka this morning on a two-day visit.
He is the first among the world leaders to join Bangladesh’s golden jubilee of independence and Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary celebrations.
On his arrival around 8:30 am, President M Abdul Hamid received his Maldivian counterpart at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, a foreign ministry official has confirmed.
His wife, First Lady Madam Fazna Ahmed, is accompanying him.
Besides, a delegation of 27, including Maldives Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid and Economic Development Minister Fayyaz Ismail, has also joined him.
From the airport, Solih went to the National Martyrs’ Memorial in Savar to pay respect to the martyrs of the Liberation War and then to pay homage to Bangabandhu in Dhanmondi.
In the afternoon, he will attend the National Parade Square function at Tejgaon where Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will join him in the afternoon.
The 10-day celebrations of Mujib Borsho and the golden jubilee of independence will be inaugurated with colourful events. The first part of the programme titled “Bhengechhe Duar, Eshechche Jyotirmoy” will be held from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm where President Abdul Hamid will be the chief guest, while Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will preside over it.
Maldives President Solih will deliver a speech as a guest of honour.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga would deliver recorded welcome speeches today.
The second part of the event will be held from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Cultural troops from Bangladesh and India will perform at today’s show.
The events will feature the life and struggles of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the heroic role of the people who fought the nine-month-long war against the Pakistani junta and sacrificed their lives for the much-sought liberation in 1971.
The event today will begin with the national anthem. An animated film on Bangabandhu will be screened.
Tomorrow, Solih will hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the Gono Bhaban. The same day, he will attend a cultural show and dinner to be hosted by President Abdul Hamid at the Bangabhaban.
The Maldives is the largest labour market for Bangladesh in South Asia. Some 90,000 Bangladeshis work there. Many of them became undocumented and some 10,000 returned home last year. There is scope for cooperation in trade in fisheries, health, tourism and climate change.
Bangladesh wants to sign a Preferential Trade Agreement and a direct shipping service with the Maldives to increase trade. The Maldives seeks more doctors and health professionals from Bangladesh.
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Source URL: Google News
