Staff Reporter :
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus returned home on Thursday morning, wrapping up a nine-day official visit to New York where he attended the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and held a series of high-level meetings.
An Emirates Airlines commercial flight carrying Prof Yunus and his delegation landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 9:00am, his Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder confirmed to the media.
The flight had departed from New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport late Tuesday night at 11:10pm local time.
Bangladesh’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury, and Bangladesh Ambassador to the United States, Tareq Md Ariful Islam, saw him off at the airport.
During his stay in New York, Prof Yunus addressed the 80th UNGA session on September 26, where he underscored Bangladesh’s reform journey and commitment to global peace and justice.
On September 30, he delivered a statement at the “High-Level Conference on the Situation of the Rohingya Muslims and Other Minorities in Myanmar” at the UN Headquarters, reiterating Dhaka’s call for durable solutions to the refugee crisis.
The Chief Adviser also held a bilateral meeting with UN Secretary General António Guterres on September 29, while United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi called on him at his hotel.
In addition, he met with Rabab Fatima, the UN Under Secretary General and High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States.
During his New York visit, Prof Yunus attended a reception hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump, where he extended an invitation for the President to visit Bangladesh at a convenient time.
He also joined bilateral meetings with leaders of the Netherlands, Pakistan, Bhutan, and Kosovo on the sidelines of the UNGA.
Prof Yunus had departed Dhaka on September 22 for the UNGA session, his first major multilateral appearance since assuming the role of Chief Adviser.
