As three Italian ministers paid Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a visit on the margins of the UN Food Systems Summit, they expressed interest in hiring more Bangladeshi workers, notably in the agriculture and hospitality industries.
“Italy wants to hire more workers from Bangladesh for its hospitality and agriculture sectors,” Foreign Minister Dr. AK Abdul Momen quoted the Italian ministers as telling the premier at their meetings at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters.
After discussions with the Bangladeshi prime minister on Monday, Italy’s ministers of the interior, justice, and agriculture, Francesco Lollobrigida, Matteo Piantedosi, informed the media.
As the Italian ministers and the prime of Bangladesh stressed the importance of keeping a proper channel when traveling overseas, Momen claimed that the problem of unauthorized workers also came up in the talks.
The prime minister of Bangladesh stated that her nation constantly disapproves of illicit labor.
Sheikh Hasina asked the Italian government to legalize the polite and knowledgeable undocumented workers, noting that both documented and undocumented workers contribute to the economies of Bangladesh and Italy.
Momen stated, “Italy is very pleased that Bangladesh is consistently supportive in allowing workers to migrate in a legal manner.”
Prior to the UN Food Systems Summit, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina met privately with her Nepali colleague Pushpa Kamal Dahal at the newly inaugurated Bangladesh-Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Room at the FAO headquarters.
In the meeting, the premier offered Nepal to use the newly constructed Pyra port.
“Bangladesh has already opened the Chalna and Chattogram ports for Nepal. Nepal can use the newly constructed Pyra port as well,” Momen quoted the prime minister as saying.
The premier said Bangladesh is developing Sayedpur airport as a regional hub to enhance the connectivity.
The Nepalese prime minister highly praised Bangladesh for its development and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for successfully running her country.
“You (Sheikh Hasina) are a leader of our region,” Dahal said.
He added that Nepal has a big potential for producing hydroelectricity.
In this regard, Sheikh Hasina declared that Bangladesh would take steps to import additional renewable energy, notably hydroelectricity, following the start of the first trilateral power exchange for 40 megawatts from Nepal to Bangladesh via India.
Dahal noted that many Nepalese students are attending universities in Bangladesh.
Sheikh Hasina requested support from IFAD to increase wheat and edible oil output in Bangladesh during a separate meeting with IFAD President Alvaro Lario at the FAO headquarters.
According to Momen, the Bangladesh prime minister also called on the IFAD to help Bangladesh in marketing small agro-enterprises and building an efficient food storage system.
World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Cindy Hensley McCain, as well, met Sheikh Hasina at the FAO headquarters.
At the meeting, the Bangladesh prime minister asked the WFP to raise funds particularly for displaced Rohingyas who took shelter in Bangladesh as per capita fund for Rohingyas declined to US$ 8 from US$ 12.
She claimed that as a result of the many measures taken by her government since taking office, Bangladesh’s food output had successfully increased.
She stated that Bangladesh is well-positioned to produce not only crops but also fish and other foods.
John McCain’s wife, Cindy Hensley McCain, adopted a three-month-old Bangladeshi child in the early 1990s. John McCain was a former US presidential contender.
The director general of the Food and Agriculture Organization, Qu Dongyu, hosted a reception at the FAO headquarters that included the prime minister and other heads of state.
At a ceremony attended by Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, Bangladesh also signed a deal with the World Food Programme to enhance and expand its school feeding program for pupils in primary schools.
In 2010, the Bangladeshi government implemented a school feeding program, and as of now, over 23 lakh pupils in 15,000 primary schools in 104 upazilas are receiving meals as a result of the initiative.
According to the new agreement, the school feeding program would be extended to more than 150 upazilas, bringing the total number of pupils who will benefit to 37 lakh. In place of fortified biscuits, fruits, milk, bread, eggs, and other nutrient-rich meals will be supplied.
According to Momen, the primary school enrollment rate has grown by 14 percent, while the dropout rate has decreased by 7.5 percent as a result of the feeding program.
At a meeting held here on Monday, Bangladesh also joined the School Meals Coalition as its 85th member.
At the briefing were Md. Shameem Ahsan, ambassador of Bangladesh to Italy, and Md. Nazrul Islam, speechwriter for the prime minister.
