Foreign Minister Dipu Moni has urged Swiss Assistant State Secretary Beat Nobs to import more Bangladeshi products, particularly ceramics, pharmaceuticals, household items and computer software.During a meeting at her office, Moni said there was still room for increasing the trade relations and investment cooperation between the two countries.
Nobs came to Dhaka to hold first-ever political consultations between the two countries on Tuesday.
Economic relations between Switzerland and Bangladesh have been growing over the last few years. The two-way trade stood at $406 million last year, having grown by about 26 percent over the previous year.
Bangladesh mainly exports readymade garment and leather products to Switzerland and imports from it industrial machinery, chemicals and pharmaceutical products.
The Foreign Minister emphasised the need for exchanges of visits between the two apex chambers and said the Switzerland-Bangladesh Business Forum (SBBF) could be ‘more active’ in promoting trade and investment.
According to a foreign ministry media release, Nobs appreciated the investment friendly climate in Bangladesh, the spontaneous economic and development progress and in particular mentioned that there were huge potentials for the Swiss small and medium enterprises to invest in Bangladesh.
The two countries agreed to work on common values in the UN and other international and regional organizations including the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) that both countries joined in November.
Source:BDnews 24
