Raise voice for Rohingya repatriation: Finance Minister to ADB

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Sunday requested the representatives of Asian Development Bank (ADB) to raise their voices for the quick repatriation of Rohingyas, reports UNB.

“Bangladesh is one of the most densely-populated countries in the world. Taking care of an additional 1 million refugees is a huge burden for us. So we request ADB’s representatives to raise their voices for their repatriation,” he told reporters after meeting ADB’s representatives in Dhaka.

In-chang Song, Executive Director of ADB, led the ADB team in the meeting.

Kamal said ADB representatives also visited the Rohingyas camps. “Our relationship with ADB is augmenting day by day. Today’s meeting has been a meaningful one and it’ll sustain our relationship for long,” he said.

Replying to a question, the minister acknowledged ADB’s contribution to the development of Bangladesh since 1973.

“They’re with us in our journey [towards development]. Since 1973, ADB’s total funding has been almost $25 billion,” he said.

In-chang Song said Bangladesh achieved the highest economic growth last year in the Asia Pacific region and that ADB was proud of Bangladesh.

“We’ll continue our partnership with Bangladesh for its economic development in future,” he said.

Replying to a question on the Rohingya repatriation, ADB Executive Director Kris Panday said they took note of the concerns of Bangladesh.

“We’ve taken a very fast step to support the humanitarian needs of the people who’ve been displaced from Myanmar,” he said. “That’s our priority.”

Alternate executive directors Enrique Glan, Burak Muezzinoglu, Bayrammuhammet Garayev, and Kenzo Ohe, ADB Country Director for Bangladesh Manmohan Parkash and Finance Ministry’s officials were also present there.