UNDP offers training support for newly elected MPs
Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad has sought United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) support for Rohingya repatriation and parliamentary capacity-building, while the UN agency expressed interest in promoting gender equality and introducing an e-parliament system.
The United Nations Development Programme has pledged readiness to support orientation programmes and training for newly elected members of parliament, as its Resident Representative in Dhaka, Stephen Rodriques, met Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad at the parliament building.
During the courtesy call at the Speaker’s office at Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, the two sides discussed parliamentary development, human rights, gender equality, energy issues and regional and global cooperation, according to a Parliament Secretariat press release.
Hafiz Uddin said UNDP had been operating in Bangladesh for a long time and remained an important development partner. He credited the organisation’s projects and cooperation with the national parliament with contributing to the advancement of parliamentary democracy.
The Speaker also sought UNDP’s assistance in facilitating the repatriation of Rohingyas to Myanmar, saying their prolonged presence had created considerable challenges for Bangladesh.
He said around 1.5 million Rohingyas had been living in the country for an extended period, putting additional pressure on the national economy and local communities.
Rodriques said UNDP’s relationship with Bangladesh had continued to develop over time. He said the organisation worked to promote cooperation at both global and regional levels.
He also expressed UNDP’s interest in supporting gender equality through lawmakers and facilitating the introduction of an e-parliament system.
Referring to the previous government’s 15-year rule, Hafiz Uddin said enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, money laundering and a politics of killings had deprived people of their fundamental rights.
He said democracy had been restored through the national parliamentary election in February last, adding that a United Nations human rights investigation report had revealed the grim picture of the previous government’s rule.
The Speaker said opposition lawmakers had been actively participating in the current parliament’s proceedings and expressing their views during discussions on every bill.
He also praised women lawmakers, saying each held an important position in her respective field and played a commendable role in parliamentary activities.
Hafiz Uddin further informed Rodriques that Barrister Jahrat Adib Chowdhury, chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had been elected to the Executive Committee of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) for a four-year term at the 153rd IPU Assembly.
Parliament Secretariat Secretary Barrister Md Golam Sarwar Bhuiyan and officials from UNDP and the Parliament Secretariat were present at the meeting.
