British minister Desmond Swayne visits Dhaka

UK Minister of State for International Development Desmond Swayne arrived in Dhaka today on a three-day visit to reaffirm the UK’s commitment to supporting Bangladesh’s development.

During the visit, the minister will engage with local audiences about the UK government’s priorities and also assess progress made towards promoting economic prosperity and development in Bangladesh, said in a press release of British High Commission in Dhaka today.

“The UK supports the government of Bangladesh’s aim to achieve middle income status within the next decade. Following on from Bangladesh’s commitments on ending child marriage, made at the 2014 Girl Summit in London, the Minister will want to find out more about ongoing work to tackle this important issue,” the press release reads.

Desmond Swayne said, “2015 is a crucial year for development and I am very pleased to be here in Bangladesh. Our countries have a strong relationship built up over the years and I want to see that become even stronger as Bangladesh flourishes and leads its own development.”

He said that over the next few days he wanted to meet people who are benefiting from the UK’s support and also those working hard to ensure their help reach those who need it most.

“High on my agenda will be finding out more about progress made around safety in the garment industry since Rana Plaza as well as seeing how DFID’s support has transformed livelihoods in the Chars,” the minister said in the media release.

“I also want to find out more about life in urban areas where community groups and savings programmes, along with business and technical training, are giving people the tools to lift themselves out of poverty,’’ the press release stated him.

The Minister will meet a range of people including the top government officials, development partners, civil society, the business community and most importantly ordinary Bangladeshis who have benefitted from the UK’s support, it said.