Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)- A business delegation of the Switzerland government will arrive in Dhaka on April 21 with an aim to further deepen official contacts in the areas of business and trade and provide fresh impetus to the growing trade relations between the two countries.
The delegation will be led by ambassador Eric Martin, the head of bilateral economic relations of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland.
This will be the first visit by a Swiss economic delegation to Bangladesh and the delegation will meet senior government and private sector officials, a Swiss Embassy press statement said in Dhaka.
During the two-day visit, the members of the delegation are scheduled to meet the foreign minister, the commerce minister and the industries minister.
The Swiss delegation will also meet the executive chairman of the Board of Investment and other senior government officials during the visit.
They will also exchange views with the Swiss companies doing business here in Bangladesh and meet Bangladeshi business leaders, chamber presidents, media and civil society members, the release added.
In these meetings the delegation will try to find more ways to support the Swiss private sector interested in doing business in Bangladesh.
Switzerland-Bangladesh economic relations have been growing rapidly over the last years, said the release, adding that in 2012, bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Switzerland stood at $406 million, marking around 26 per cent growth over 2011.
The main Bangladeshi export items to Switzerland are readymade garments and leather products.
On the other hand, Switzerland mainly exports industrial machinery, chemical and pharmaceutical products to Bangladesh, it added.
BBN/SSR/SI-19Apr13-7:42 pm (BST)
