Prof Yunus urges South KoreaInvest more in Bangladesh, recruit more workers

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday urged South Korea to invest more in Bangladesh and recruit more Bangladeshi workers, especially in their shipbuilding industry, for mutual benefits.

He made the call when South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Park Young-sik called on him at his office in Tejgaon.

"We look forward to a broader and more developed relationship with South Korea, elevating our existing relationship to the next step," Prof Yunus told the ambassador.

Raising the issue of the current situation in the Korean peninsula, the ambassador expressed concern at North Korea's deployment of troops in the Russia-Ukraine war and its recent ballistic missile test.

The chief adviser sought peace and stability in the Korean peninsula.

Park Young-sik told the chief adviser that many South Korean companies were keen to invest in Bangladesh with the recent positive turn in the business climate.

He conveyed Korea's particular interest in hiring Bangladeshi workers for Korea's shipbuilding sector.

The envoy said many South Korean companies were operating RMG factories in Bangladesh's specialised economic zones.

He also said Bangladesh is the number 1 recipient country of Korea's Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) and is a very important development partner.

The total amount of the official development assistance (ODA) loan from EDCF is $3 billion for Bangladesh, involving 34 projects.

The EDCF also has 14 projects in progress that are ongoing or under feasibility study. It will raise the amount of Korean investment to $7 billion.

"We hope to continue to proceed with existing projects without interruption," said the South Korean ambassador.

"Just 50 years ago, Korea was also an ODA recipient country. So, we’re well aware of the difficulties of Bangladesh and could be good partners through sharing development experience," he said, underscoring the need for early negotiation of an economic partnership agreement (EPA) between Bangladesh and South Korea.

The chief adviser thanked Korea for their continued support for Bangladesh in various fields.

Principal coordinator for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) affairs Lamiya Morshed and Economic Relations Division Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky were present on the occasion.