Microsoft chairman and co-chair of Bill and Milinda Gates Foundation William H (Bill) Gates has expressed keen interest to work together with Bangladesh to help it attain the millennium development goals.
Bill Gates expressed the interest when he paid a courtesy call on the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, at her hotel suite in the Swiss city on Monday evening, said the prime minister’s press secretary Abul Kalam Azad.
Highly appreciating the prime minister’s vision and concepts and programmes to turn Bangladesh into a modern digital country, the Microsoft chairman expressed hope that Hasina’s modern and prudent leadership would take Bangladesh into a new height of development.
Bill Gates further appreciated the present government’s development programmes in the field of women empowerment, agriculture and health sector.
The prime minister and the Microsoft chairman also discussed scope of cooperation in vaccination programmes.
Thanking the Microsoft chairman for his commitment and efforts towards people’s development, the prime minister said her government was highly committed to ensuring women empowerment to establish their rights in all spheres of the society.
Besides, the prime minister told Bill Gates her government’s various programmes to reduce child and mother mortality rate. The Microsoft chairman congratulated the prime minister on achievement of Bangladesh the MDG-4 award.
The prime minister said her government was relentlessly working to achieve the other millennium development goals.
Health minister AFM Ruhal Haq, foreign minister Dipu Moni, state minister for forest and environment Hasan Mahmud, adviser to the prime minister Syed Mudasser Ali, ambassador at-large M Ziauddin, principal secretary to the prime minister MA karim and press secretary Abul Kalam Azad, among others were present.
Meanwhile, UNCTAD secretary general Supachai Panitchpakdi in another meeting with prime minister at her hotel suite in the evening invited her to the UNCTAD to be held in Doha next year. The UNCTAD leader told Hasina that her presence at the summit will make it a success.
In another meeting with UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibé appreciated the prime minister for Bangladesh’s success in controlling the HIV/AIDS.
Later, WHO director Shekhar Saxena paid a courtesy call on Sheikh Hasina at the hotel in the evening.
Courtesy of UNB/New Age
