The chief of Bangladesh's caretaker government on Thursday called on Türkiye to bring its technology to the South Asian country and help build defense industry.
"You are the leader of the technology; you can build your defense industry here. Let’s make a beginning ... we are available for anything that you need," Muhammad Yunus told a Turkish delegation led by Trade Minister Ömer Bolat.
The sides met in the capital Dhaka, where Bolat said the two countries can diversify their cooperation beyond the textile industry, which accounts for Türkiye's primary import from Bangladesh.
He said that there can be economic cooperation in the field of defense industry, health care, pharmaceuticals, and farm machinery.
Bangladesh's exports to Türkiye stood at around $581 million in 2023-24, while imports were around $424 million.
"We can replace India and other markets in Bangladesh’s imports. There can be cooperation in economic and social fields at all levels," Bolat said.
Bangladesh is the eighth most populous country in the world, said Yunus, adding that his government was working to create work opportunities for the country’s youths, thus it sought Türkiye’s help in this regard.
"Use our young people to run your factories here (in Bangladesh) so that you can supply your products in the region,” Yunus said.
Nearly 20 large Turkish companies are operating in Bangladesh in garments and textiles, accessories, chemicals, engineering, construction, and energy sectors.
A Nobel Peace laureate, Yunus took charge of Bangladesh's caretaker government in August, hoping to help heal the country that was convulsed by weeks of violence, forcing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to quit and flee to neighboring India.
Known as the "banker to the poor," Yunus is the pioneer of the global microcredit movement. The Grameen Bank he founded won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for helping lift millions from poverty by providing tiny loans to the rural poor who are too impoverished to gain attention from traditional banks.
Yunus is tasked with bringing stability back to the country that witnessed some of its worst violence in decades and then hold fresh parliamentary elections.
