PUTRAJAYA: Bangladesh Interim Government Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus began his three-day official visit to Malaysia yesterday with a ceremonial welcome at the Perdana Putra Complex.
Yunus arrived at 9am and was greeted by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, before both nations’ anthems were played. He then inspected a guard of honour mounted by three officers and 103 personnel from the First Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment, led by Major Arifudin Mohd Yusof.
The ceremony was attended by Deputy Prime Ministers Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil, foreign diplomats and senior officials.
Following the formalities, Yunus signed the guest book and held a bilateral meeting with Anwar.
Discussions are expected to cover trade and investment, labour, education, tourism, defence, as well as regional and global developments.
Both leaders will also witness the exchange of several memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in defence, energy, strategic studies, semiconductor capacity building and trade promotion.
Today, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate will deliver a public lecture at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), where he will receive an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Social Business. He will also meet members of the Yunus Social Business Centre community and UKM’s university network.
In 2024, bilateral trade rose 5.1 per cent to RM13.35 billion (USD2.92 billion), with Malaysia ranking as Bangladesh’s second-largest trading partner and export destination in South Asia.
Key Malaysian exports include petroleum products, palm oil and chemicals, while imports from Bangladesh comprise textiles, footwear, petroleum products and manufactured goods.
The visit is set to deepen cooperation in mutually beneficial areas, building on strong diplomatic ties established in 1972. – BERNAMA
