Rishi Sunak praises Bangladesh’s economic growth, calls PM Hasina a great inspiration

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday (May 05, 2023) said that Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is a great inspiration to him.

“My wife and two daughters are your fans,” he was quoted as saying during a bilateral meeting with his Bangladeshi counterpart at the Marlborough House of the Commonwealth Secretariat in London.

This was the first meeting between the two prime ministers after Sunak took over as the Prime Minister of Britain.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is in London to attend the coronation of King Charles III.

Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneem briefed reporters after the meeting. PM’s Speech Writer M Nazrul Islam was also present during the briefing.

PM Hasina congratulated Sunak at the beginning of the meeting. She congratulated him on becoming the first British prime minister of Asian heritage at a young age.

“You are a great example of what the youth can do,” she was quoted as saying.

Praising Bangladesh's economic growth and Sheikh Hasina's leadership, Sunak wanted to know the secret behind success in maintaining high economic growth before and after the Covid-19 pandemic, the High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Britain said. She also said the British PM considers Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a role model.

Highlighting UK's relationship with Bangladesh, the High Commissioner said, “Rishi Sunak said that our relationship is very good. We have a wonderful relationship of 50 years. (In the future) it will be even better.”

She said that there was a discussion on business relations between the two PMs.

“As you know our relationship with Britain earlier was an aid-based relationship. But now, even 1 percent of our GDP is not from aid,” the Bangladesh High Commissioner said.

“The British PM wanted to increase the trade and investment between Bangladesh and Britain,” she said.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said that British companies should invest more in Bangladesh. High Commissioner Saida Muna also said that Britain attaches great importance to Bangladesh.

Heads of states and governments from 130 countries have come to the UK to attend the King's coronation. “Among them, Rishi Sunak has held bilateral meetings with the heads of states and governments of only 7 countries. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was among them.”

During the bilateral meeting that went on for about 35 minutes, various bilateral and regional issues were discussed as well as Rohingyas who were forcibly displaced from their homeland in Myanmar.

Saida Muna said, "Rishi Sunak mentioned that Bangladesh is carrying this huge burden, and Britain understands that it is a big problem."

Sheikh Hasina thanked the British Prime Minister and people for their support to the Rohingya issue. She also said that the burden of Rohingyas has become a big security threat.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina invited Rishi Sunak to visit Bangladesh to see the conditions of Rohingyas firsthand. Sunak praised Prime Minister Hasina's leadership on the issue of climate change as well.

While talking about the Ashrayan Project, the Bangladeshi Prime Minister said that so far some seven lakh homeless families have been given houses under the project.

British PM Rishi Sunak highly praised the Ashrayan project, the Bangladesh High Commissioner said.