38 January 2016 www.bahrainthismonth.com interview Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali The upturn in Bangladesh’s economy in recent years has led to a shortage of agricultural workers which could see members of Bahrain’s 150,000-strong Bengali labour force deserting the island to return home. That was the view of the country’s Foreign Minister, Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, when he paid a whistle-stop trip to the Kingdom paving the way for a Prime Ministerial visit early in 2016. Mr Ali was in Bahrain following an invitation issued just a few months ago during a meeting at the United Nations General Assembly. He said: “We have an excellent relationship with Bahrain and, like all relationships, it needs to be nurtured and taken forward.” The minister’s visit included high-level meetings with HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa and several other government and officials. The meetings led to the signing of three important agreements dealing with: protection of investment; double taxation; and bilateral consultations between the foreign affairs ministries of the two countries. “Bahrain’s Prime Minister invited our Prime Minister to visit, which we expect to happen around early February and we hope to sign a number of further agreements then,” said Mr Ali. He added that the Bahraini government has invited Bangladesh to present an exposition of TARGETING AGREEMENTS AND INVESTMENT the products it exports which it’s hoped will increase trade between the two countries. The Foreign Minister said Bangladesh, most known for its garment exports, has now made a strong entry into other markets such as pharmaceuticals, an area which he said was ripe for investment from the region. “The private sector is coming in in a big way, Japan, China, India and Korea all have substantial investment in Bangladesh and are setting up production facilities. Even some Italian leather shoe makers are planning to move their production facilities,” he said. “We are setting up special economic zones all over the country, with around 100 planned.” These will be areas where investment will be actively encouraged and will include rural areas as well as towns and cities. Pointing out that his country’s growth has run LIZ O’REILLY Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali speaks to BTM about trade deals and the result of a booming economy. at six per cent for the last six years since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina came back into office, he added that experts are predicting seven per cent growth for the current year. However, while this growth is very welcome, Mr Ali did admit that increased production has actually led to a shortage of agricultural workers, in turn prompting a move towards levels of mechanisation previously unseen. Asked if his country’s newfound prosperity could lead to the Gulf’s Bangladeshi workforce heading home, as has happened with many of the region’s former Indian workers, Mr Ali agreed this could indeed be a possibility. However, he added that Bangladesh is also keen to welcome Bahrainis, particularly to its military training facilities adding that his country is ready to play a key role in the Saudi-led Islamic military coalition combatting terrorism.
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