Bangladeshi Pri-me Minister Sheikh Hasina has stressed the need for exchanging parliamentary and business delegations between Bangladesh and Pakistan. Mentioning that poverty is the main enemy of the South Asian region, Hasina emphasised on collective efforts to eradicate poverty from the region.
She stated this when Pakistan High Commissioner to Bangladesh Ashraf Qureshi called on her at the Prime Minister Office on Sunday.
Speaking about domestic politics of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said her government is working hard to provide a strong base for democracy in the country, which was established through free and fair elections on December 29 in 2008.
"We got democracy through a free, fair, credible and acceptable election, and we want to establish it properly," she said. The Prime Minister said that it is not possible to do any real welfare for the people of the country without democracy. "It was the people who suffered most in absence of democracy."
She said that her government is working hard to provide a strong base for democracy in Bangladesh.
PM's Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad, who was present at the meeting, later briefed the reporters. Pakistan High Commissioner Ashraf Qureshi praised Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her visionary leadership. He mentioned that the "Vision 2021" and "Digital Bangladesh" of Awami League were both excellent and these could greatly advance Bangladesh towards more development.
The High Commissioner put emphasis on united efforts of the member countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) to eradicate poverty from the region.