1 October : Bangladesh and the Republic of Korea have agreed to further strengthen cooperation in trade, investment, development, technology and industrial development during separate meetings between Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir and senior Korean officials in Seoul.
State Minister Humayun Kabir held separate meetings on Thursday with Hyejin Kwon, Deputy Minister for Trade Negotiations at South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, and senior leadership of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
During his meeting with Deputy Minister Kwon, the State Minister reaffirmed Bangladesh’s interest in further expanding its longstanding cooperation with South Korea and appreciated Seoul’s contribution to Bangladesh’s economic transformation and industrial development.
Kabir welcomed the successful conclusion of the Bangladesh–ROK Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in August 2026, describing it as an important avenue for Bangladesh to integrate more deeply into Korean and regional supply chains, particularly as the country transitions from least developed country (LDC) status.
He expressed hope that the CEPA would be formally signed during the proposed visit of the President of the Republic of Korea to Bangladesh, following completion of the necessary domestic procedures.
Highlighting the growth in bilateral trade, Kabir called for concrete measures to increase Korean imports of Bangladeshi goods and services and gradually reduce the existing trade imbalance. He also sought the streamlining of food-safety inspection and quarantine procedures for Bangladeshi agricultural, fisheries and food products.
The State Minister requested South Korea’s support for Bangladesh’s accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and encouraged greater Korean investment in Bangladesh. He urged Korean conglomerates and small and medium-sized enterprises to explore investment opportunities through joint investment promotion initiatives and government-to-government facilitation.
Deputy Minister Kwon welcomed the progress in Bangladesh–South Korea economic relations and expressed Seoul’s interest in further expanding bilateral trade, investment and industrial cooperation, including through the CEPA framework.
At a separate meeting with KOICA Vice-President Doh Young-Ah, Kabir expressed appreciation for the agency’s longstanding contribution to Bangladesh’s socio-economic development through grant assistance, capacity building, technical cooperation and knowledge sharing.
He thanked KOICA for its $39 million Saemaul Plus End Poverty Programme and sought further Korean cooperation in areas including water security and climate resilience, skills development, employment-oriented technical education and digital health.
The State Minister also expressed Bangladesh’s interest in moving the next phase of KOICA-Bangladesh cooperation towards larger-scale, integrated and transformative programmes in areas such as digital transformation, artificial intelligence and digital public services.
He requested early concurrence from the Korean side on financing for mass rapid transit (MRT) projects in Dhaka, alongside the Asian Development Bank.
The KOICA Vice-President welcomed Bangladesh’s interest in expanding development cooperation and expressed readiness to explore new areas and programmes aligned with Bangladesh’s development priorities and Korea’s development-cooperation experience.
The meetings reaffirmed the shared commitment of Bangladesh and South Korea to further deepen their comprehensive partnership, particularly in trade, investment, industrial cooperation, technology transfer and development cooperation, based on mutual interests and shared priorities.