Bangladesh, UAE discuss visa facilitation

Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates are discussing visa facilitation for Bangladeshi citizens.

Bangladesh Consul-General in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, Md. Rasheduzzaman gave this information.

He said the number of Bangladeshi citizens in the UAE is around one million, which has remained stable and has not increased further due to 'visa complications'.

Rasheduzzaman gave an interview to local media outlet Khaleej Times on the occasion of Dubai's 55th Independence and National Day celebrations.

He said, "We are in discussions with the UAE government on visa facilitation (for Bangladeshis). Bangladeshi professionals are contributing to the economic growth of the UAE by working in various industries and as entrepreneurs. We want to see Bangladeshi citizens become part of the UAE's success story."

The event was attended by around 300 guests, including Mohammed Albahri, Head of Protocol and Operations Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dubai Office; Tarek Ahmed, Ambassador of Bangladesh to the UAE; and diplomats from other countries.

Expansion of consular services

Rasheduzzaman said the Bangladeshi Consulate has recently launched many new consular services for citizens living across the UAE.

He said, “We operate special consular services in different emirates three days a week – Saturday, Sunday and Friday. Our team travels to different emirates to provide on-the-spot consular services to workers who cannot come to the consulate. This saves them time, energy and money. In addition, we have opened a help desk inside our consulate. Because many uneducated workers fall into the clutches of brokers, due to the lack of correct information.

This mobile service provides all types of consular services to Bangladeshi citizens for three days, added Rasheduzzaman.

CEPA discussion

The Consul-General said that the UAE and Bangladesh have started negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which is currently in its initial stages. The total bilateral trade between the two countries is about $1.5 billion. If the CPEA negotiations are successful, the trade volume will increase manifold.

He believes that the economic relations between the two countries have not been fully utilized so far. Therefore, both governments are working closely to increase trade.

He added, "Not only trade, we also want investment from the UAE, especially in areas like ICT, renewable energy, infrastructure, port facilities, agro-processing, and halal meat processing in Bangladesh, so that exports can be made to other destinations."