UN chief Guterres assures support for Bangladesh reforms

DHAKA Bangladesh

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday expressed his full support for reforms initiated by Bangladesh's transitional government.

The UN chief, who arrived in Dhaka on a four-day visit on Thursday, met Bangladesh chief adviser Muhammad Yunus at his Tejgaon office in Dhaka.

Yunus assumed office after a popular uprising forced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to India last August.

His government has formed six reform commissions to implement necessary changes in the administration and electoral process, demanded by the students and civilians who led the uprising.

"I want to express our total commitment to the reform process. We are here to support your reforms. We wish you all the best. Whatever we can do, let us know," the UN chief told Yunus during the hour-long meeting, according to a government statement.

"As the country undergoes important reforms and transitions, you can count on the United Nations to help build a sustainable and equitable future for all," Guterres said in a separate post on X.

Before the meeting Yunus, Guterres held talks with Bangladesh foreign adviser Md. Towhid Hossain and Khalilur Rahman, his adviser on Rohingya issues.

The two also addressed the situation in Myanmar’s Rakhine state and preparations for the upcoming high-level conference on Rohingya and other minorities in Myanmar.

Guterres, accompanied by Yunus, later visited the border district of Cox's Bazar, in southern Bangladesh, to meet Rohingya refugees and their host communities.

Bangladesh is hosting over 1.2 million Rohingya refugees who fled a Myanmar military crackdown in 2017.

He shared an iftar, the fast-breaking meal, with the refugees and said the UN will do all it can to help prevent food rations being cut for Rohingya refugees in the Bangladesh camps.

The World Food Program (WFP) recently announced it would halve food rations starting April 1, reducing the per capita allowance from $12.50 to $6 due to funding shortfalls.

Ahead of Guterres’ visit, the Amnesty International called on the international community to urgently provide the necessary support to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

According to the UNHCR, 95% of Rohingya households depend on humanitarian assistance, and the WFP’s decision to cut food rations will have a devastating impact on their lives.