Jeddah: Newly elected OIC Secretary General Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed today assured Bangladesh of the organisation's firm support for speedy repatriation of the forcibly displaced Rohingyas to their homeland in Myanmar. He gave the assurance when Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Ambassador MJH Jabed, called on him in Jeddah and handed over a congratulatory letter from Foreign Minister and President of the 81st UN General Assembly Dr Khalilur Rahman.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the OIC Secretary General warned that the protracted Rohingya crisis, if not properly addressed, could jeopardise regional security and cause immense suffering. During the meeting, Ambassador Jabed conveyed the foreign minister's sincere wishes to the new OIC Secretary General and assured him of the Bangladesh government's full support in discharging his responsibilities.
Cheikh Ahmed lauded Bangladesh's democratic transition and expressed optimism that the country's development journey would gain new momentum under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. The OIC chief also highlighted the contributions of the Islamic University of Technology (IUT), an OIC subsidiary organ hosted by Bangladesh, to advancing science and technology education across OIC member states.
He assured that new initiatives would be undertaken to expand the IUT's research and innovation capacity, particularly in different fields of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Cheikh Ahmed also indicated that Bangladesh is among the priority countries on his list for an official visit.
During the talks, the two sides observed that OIC member states could complement each other by capitalising on their diverse resource endowments. They identified contract farming, healthcare, science and technology, hospitality, education and other productive sectors and sub-sectors as potential areas for mutually beneficial cooperation and joint projects.
Thanking the Secretary General for his positive outlook towards Bangladesh, its people and leadership, Ambassador Jabed said Dhaka looks forward to working closely with the OIC Secretariat on a range of cross-cutting issues in the coming years.