Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah paid a state go to to Bangladesh on October 15-17 on the invitation of Bangladesh’s President M. Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Notably, it was the sultan’s first official go to to Dhaka because the institution of diplomatic relations on Might 5, 1984. The aim of the historic go to was to strengthen political and financial cooperation between the 2 nations.

Brunei Darussalam is a small however strategically situated and oil wealthy Southeast Asian nation. Brunei proclaimed its independence on January 1, 1984. Bangladesh opened a resident diplomatic mission in Brunei in 1985, and Brunei reciprocated by launching its diplomatic mission in Dhaka. Ostensibly, bilateral relations between the 2 nations are embedded within the shared imaginative and prescient to advertise peace, safety, stability, and socioeconomic growth.  Apart from spiritual bonds between the 2 majority Muslim nations, and their commonalities in custom and tradition, each additionally work carefully in several worldwide fora such because the United Nations, Group of Islamic Convention, the Commonwealth of Nations, and the Non-aligned Motion.

With a complete inhabitants of round 447,000 in October 2022, Brunei – probably the most current nations to achieve independence from the British Empire – has witnessed extraordinary financial growth through the years. Pushed by rising exports of oil and pure fuel, it has emerged as a high-income nation whereas additionally categorized as a part of the creating world, a uncommon feat. Oil and fuel have remained the central pillars of its financial system ever because the assets had been found in 1929. In response to Buying and selling Economics’ international macro fashions, Brunei’s GDP is projected to hit $16 billion by the tip of 2022.

Alternatively, with an estimated inhabitants of over 168 million in October 2022, Bangladesh’s GDP is projected to high $460 billion this yr. Bangladesh has loved an unimaginable success story of financial transformation, refuting Henry Kissinger’s notorious label of Bangladesh as an “worldwide basket case.” The nation appears to turn out to be an upper-middle revenue nation by 2031 because it continues to make important progress in lowering poverty, boosted by sustained financial progress and social progress.

Now each Brunei and Bangladesh need to additional their financial successes by a better partnership.

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Mentioning the host nation’s investment-friendly surroundings, in his assembly with Sultan Bolkiah, Bangladesh’s President Hamid referred to as upon the enterprise group of Brunei to spend money on Bangladesh.

On the political entrance, Hamid expressed his expectation of full cooperation from Brunei to assist Bangladesh attain the standing of a Sectoral Dialogue Accomplice of ASEAN. Hamid additionally sought Brunei’s help for the secure return of greater than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims sheltered in Bangladesh to their ancestral motherland within the Rakhine state of Myanmar. A lot of the Rohingya refugees escaped state-sponsored violence and persecution in August 2017; Bangladesh has been pushing the worldwide group to assist guarantee their secure return for over 5 years now.

Within the sultan’s assembly with Bangladesh’s prime minster, Bolkiah and Hasina oversaw the signing of 4 necessary paperwork: an air companies settlement; a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the employment and recruitment of Bangladeshi employees; an MoU on cooperation within the provide of liquefied pure fuel (LNG) and different petroleum merchandise; and a MoU on the popularity of delivery certificates.

The MoUs search to advance cooperation in a number of precedence areas from the bilateral relationship. The MoU on vitality presents a chance to discover mechanisms for long-term collaboration on the provision of LNG and different petroleum merchandise to satisfy Bangladesh’s rising demand for vitality. Notably, Brunei owns one of many largest LNG manufacturing facility on the earth.

The MoU on employment represents the truth that Brunei is a popular vacation spot for Bangladeshi migrant employees. At present, about 20,000 employees from Bangladesh are in Brunei. In response to the Bureau of Manpower Employment and Coaching (BMET), on common, about 5,000 employees from Bangladesh had been employed yearly in Brunei earlier than the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, solely 950 Bangladeshi employees got jobs in Brunei between January 2020 and August 2022.

Whereas the sultan’s go to to Bangladesh is historic, it must also been seen because the continuation of present efforts to advance relations. Hasina formally visited Brunei from April 21-23, 2019, when six MoUs had been signed to bolster cooperation within the fields of agriculture, fisheries, livestock, and provide of a lot wanted liquefied pure fuel (LNG).

The primary International Workplace Consultations (FOC) between the 2 nations passed off in Dhaka in September 2018 and the second spherical was held in Brunei in August this yr. These are necessary engagements between the 2 nations to totally optimize the untapped potential of their relationship.

At current, Brunei-Bangladesh bilateral commerce is insignificant each when it comes to quantity and worth. In response to the United Nations COMTRADE, Bangladesh exported items value simply $2.86 million to Brunei in 2020. Alternatively, Brunei’s exports to Bangladesh totaled an estimated $30 million, with petroleum fuel alone accounting for $29.9 million of that. In consequence, Brunei’s commerce surplus with Bangladesh is substantial.

Nevertheless, there’s scope for additional enlargement of commerce with potential Bangladeshi exports corresponding to ready-made clothes, prescribed drugs, leather-based merchandise and processed meals merchandise (fruit juice, spices). Bangladesh has the capability to satisfy all of Brunei’s garment necessities, because it ranks second on the earth after China in phrases ready-made clothes exports, using round 4.4 million individuals.

A shared imaginative and prescient to advertise peace and financial prosperity are necessary options of Bangladesh-Brunei relations. Mutual cooperation has been rising over the previous a long time, however it’s evolving sluggishly in arenas corresponding to commerce, funding, vitality, and agriculture. The go to of Sultan Bolkiah and signing of an settlement and three MoUs will help constructing a resilient relationship and are possible to offer additional impetus for the long run growth of an efficient strategic partnership. That stated, Bangladesh must vigorously pursue financial diplomacy and powerful engagement with Brunei to advertise its nationwide pursuits.