DHAKA: Bangladesh has expressed its desire to build a stronger, more effective and results-oriented partnership with UNICEF to improve maternal and child health, ensure quality education, empower adolescent girls, strengthen child protection and enhance climate resilience. According to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs today, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam conveyed the government’s expectations during a meeting with visiting UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka yesterday.

The meeting discussed various aspects of the longstanding cooperation between Bangladesh and UNICEF in promoting the development and welfare of women and children. Shama Obaed praised UNICEF’s contributions to the advancement and well-being of women and children in Bangladesh since the country’s independence. She said the government was committed to building an inclusive society that ensures dignity, equal opportunities and access to essential services for women and children.

She also highlighted the government’s priority initiatives, including the Family Card and Farmer Card programmes, noting that financial assistance to women-headed households would help strengthen women’s economic empowerment.

The State Minister outlined several government initiatives in education, including school feeding programmes, free textbook distribution and free education opportunities for female students up to the undergraduate level. Highlighting Bangladesh’s significant progress in reducing maternal and child mortality, Shama said the government had nearly doubled budget allocations for the health sector to strengthen healthcare services.

Reaffirming the government’s commitment to improving educational standards, she said investment in education would gradually increase, with the aim of raising education spending to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). On child marriage, she stressed the importance of addressing its underlying socioeconomic causes, including poverty, social norms, school dropouts and limited opportunities for girls.

The meeting also discussed gender-related risks arising from climate change, violence against women, including online harassment, and juvenile crime. In this connection, Shama referred to her recent meeting with Meta officials in New York, where discussions included the possibility of establishing a local office of the company in Bangladesh to ensure faster responses to complaints. She also outlined various government measures aimed at addressing juvenile crime.

The State Minister expressed appreciation for UNICEF’s assistance in ensuring education, healthcare, nutrition and protection for Rohingya children in Bangladesh. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell praised Bangladesh’s progress in reducing child mortality and stunting, increasing school attendance and birth registration, and expanding access to safe drinking water and sanitation.

Russell expressed gratitude for the government’s cooperation and reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to continuing its support for Bangladesh. Among those attending the meeting from UNICEF were UNICEF Bangladesh Representative Gillian Mellsop, Deputy Representative Emmanuel Abiru and Child Protection Specialist Shabnaz Zaherin Catherine.

Foreign Secretary Ambassador Asad Alam Siam and Director General Kazi Ehsanul Haque were also present. The meeting reaffirmed the shared commitment of Bangladesh and UNICEF to advancing the rights, protection and well-being of women and children through stronger cooperation and targeted development initiatives.

DHAKA: State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam has said the government is committed to protecting human rights and ensuring that no citizen is detained or imprisoned unjustly because of political affiliation or vendetta.

“The government will definitely ensure that no one is unjustly imprisoned or detained due to political vendetta,” she told journalists at the foreign ministry on Wednesday.

Shama said the government’s commitment to due process and fundamental rights extends to supporters of all political parties, including opposition parties and the Awami League, whose activities are currently banned.

“No party, be it the opposition party, Awami League, or any party, the current government will definitely ensure that no one is unjustly imprisoned or detained due to political vendetta,” she said.

The State Minister alleged that Bangladesh had experienced widespread human rights violations over the past 17 years, saying BNP leaders and activists were among the major victims.

“The kind of human rights that have been violated in Bangladesh in the last 17 years has never been violated in the history of Bangladesh,” she said.

“The biggest victim is the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, its leaders and activists,” she added.

Shama said the government would not allow a return to what she described as the country’s previous “fascist era” and would work to protect the fundamental rights of every citizen.

“We will never want the past fascist era to return now or in the future. We want all human rights to be ensured to every citizen,” she said.

She said the government has a responsibility to protect citizens’ rights and ensure that the justice system is not used for political revenge.

“Our government’s stand is that we are trying to protect human rights. We are responsible to the people,” she said.

Bangladesh policy guides foreign relations

Turning to foreign policy, Shama said Bangladesh’s approach is focused on protecting national interests while maintaining balanced and respectful relations with all countries.

“Our foreign policy is first and foremost a ‘Bangladesh policy’… with equal rights with everyone and maintaining our own interests with respect,” she said.

She said the elected government’s political mandate had strengthened Bangladesh’s position in negotiations with international partners.

“When Bangladesh is talking, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh is talking, then all the other stakeholders including China are listening to our words with more attention, more seriously,” she said.

“Now that Bangladesh is an elected government, we have a stronger position in our negotiation space,” she added.

Rohingya crisis requires political solution

On the Rohingya crisis, Shama said Bangladesh would use its strengthened diplomatic position to encourage greater international engagement and push for a lasting political solution.

“The matter is absolutely a political problem, it is a very sensitive matter and we need to solve this problem politically,” she said.

She said Bangladesh remains engaged in both official and unofficial communication with various stakeholders in Myanmar as part of efforts to resolve the crisis.

“We are trying to involve the international community more,” she said, referring to a high-level UN session on the Rohingya crisis scheduled for September, which Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is expected to attend.

Bangladesh will also explore whether greater involvement from the Muslim world could help increase pressure on Myanmar and create momentum towards a solution, she said.

According to Shama, the crisis has become increasingly complex since the massive influx of Rohingyas into Bangladesh began in 2017, particularly because of Myanmar’s changing political and security landscape.

She pointed to the emergence of the Arakan Army and other actors in Rakhine State, as well as growing security concerns along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, including human smuggling and drug trafficking.

Shama said it was difficult to determine the exact number of Rohingyas currently living in Bangladesh because of continued arrivals and births in the camps.

“We don’t know the exact number right now, but it will definitely be over 1.3 million,” she said, adding that an estimated 30,000 children are born in the camps each year.

She said Chinese President Xi Jinping had expressed Beijing’s willingness to cooperate with Bangladesh in finding a solution to the Rohingya crisis during Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s recent visit to China.

Shama also questioned the effectiveness of existing arrangements for resolving the crisis without stronger involvement from the United Nations and other major international stakeholders.

She said Bangladesh could gain additional diplomatic leverage from Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman’s upcoming role as President of the UN General Assembly.

“From that place, we have a power to speak for Bangladesh in the international community. We think that at least in the next year, we will be able to use this capacity a little better,” she said.

Shama reiterated that Bangladesh would continue to pursue a “Bangladesh policy” in its international relations, protecting national interests while maintaining ties with other countries on the basis of equality and mutual respect.