DHAKA: Ambassador William Hanna, Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh, visited Sylhet division to see the progress of a number of European Union funded projects in the region.

The visit covered an array of projects ranging from capacity building of tea plantation workers to soil fertility to technical and vocational education and training for young people in the informal sector in the country.

The varied projects in the region show the extent of the European Union`s engagement in the development sector in Bangladesh.

For the European Union, democracy and human rights are universal values that should be vigorously promoted around the world.

On 17 March Ambassador Hanna visited the project named `Mapping and Capacity Building of Tea Plantation Workers and Little Known Ethnic Communities of Bangladesh.` The European Union is providing about EUR 240,000 to improve the living and working conditions of the members of this little known, deprived community.

On the second day of the visit, Ambassador Hanna went to the implementation area of the `Soil Fertility Component Project` funded by the European Union. The project, with a budget of more than EUR8 million, is being implemented in six ecologically disadvantaged areas of Bangladesh by the Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI) of the Ministry of Agriculture through local NGOs.

The European Union attaches high importance to skills development of young population in Bangladesh. On 19 March, in Sylhet Sadar, Ambassador Hanna visited the project entitled `Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) for Young People in the Informal Economy in Bangladesh.`

The European Union is providing EUR 1,690,000 to ensure demand driven and flexible Technical and Vocational Education and Training for young people in the informal sector in the country.

After rounding off the three-day visit to Sylhet, Ambassador Hanna said, “It was heartening to see how funds from Europe have helped make changes in the lives of many people in every corner in this country. Bangladesh has come a long way since independence, and the EU has always been a steady partner of Bangladesh in this long journey.”

BDST: 1610 HRS, MAR 19, 2014