DHAKA: Experts and practitioners said at a workshop the greater development cooperation with the emerging economies as part of ‘South-South Cooperation’ model could be highly beneficial for Bangladesh in achieving its middle income aspiration.
To that end, deeper collaboration with the emerging economies of the south is needed in the areas of trade, overseas employment and technical cooperation, they also underscored.
The observations came from a workshop on ‘South-South and Triangular Cooperation in Bangladesh’ organized by Economic Relations Division (ERD) of the Ministry of Finance at the NEC Conference Room in the capital on Monday.
Addressing the workshop, ERD Secretary M Abul Kalam Azad as chief guest said, “The South-South Cooperation or SSC is evolving as a significant platform for promoting development between the Southern countries.”
He added: “It is gradually becoming an effective way of building effective development cooperation between the low and Middle Income Countries (MICs) of the Southern region.”
“Our current vision is beyond the MDGs since we want to be an MIC. Thus, our challenges and expectations are higher and broader. We have to ensure both quantitative and qualitative aspects of development,” he further added.
Representatives and high officials from ERD and various government ministries and departments as well as civil society organizations participated in the workshop.
Speakers at the event discussed in detail the present status and the future potential of South-South Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation in the context of Bangladesh. In doing so, they explored the potential areas for such cooperation, existing institutional and policy arrangements for such collaboration as well as possible challenges.
The workshop explored the potential of trade opportunities for Bangladesh with the Southern economies while focusing on the current constraints and also providing suggestions for more policy coherence and greater collaboration.
The workshop specially stressed on the potential of overseas employment opportunities for Bangladeshis in some of the emerging Southern economies such as Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Middle-eastern labor markets.
Participants at the workshop also explored the current level of technical cooperation that is received from the Southern countries, particularly Malaysia, China and India in the form of scholarships and fellowships and its potential impact on Bangladesh’s development and up-scaling skills.
Member of the Planning Commission Professor Dr Shamsul Alam, ERD Additional Secretaries Arastoo Khan, M Ashadul Islam, Kazi Shofiqul Azam and Mohammad Shafiqul Azam, Director General, WTO Cell Amitava Chakaraborty, ERD Joint Secretary and the National Project Director of the Aid Effectiveness Project Nurjahan Begum, ndc, National Project Manager of the Aid Effectiveness Project Monowar Ahmed, Convener of CSO Aid Accountability Group Ahmed Swapan and UNDP Policy Specialist Karolien Casaer also spoke.
BDST: 1815 HRS, DEC 30, 2013
Edited by: M. Mahbub Alam, Asst Output Editor
