Dhaka and Oslo are going to sign a repatriation deal to send back illegal Bangladeshis in Norway.
“We have signed the similar arrangement with the European Union and now we are going to sign it with Norway,” said a foreign ministry official.
It is expected to be signed on Jun 29, when Bangladesh Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque and Norwegian Secretary General Wegger Chr Strømmen is scheduled for bilateral talks in Oslo.
Rohingya, knowledge sharing, investment from Norfund, blue economy and other areas of cooperation will be discussed in the meeting, the official said.
Rohingya cooperation
Norway from the very beginning is very supportive to Rohingya issue and Dhaka expects more help from the Scandinavian country.
“We will seek political support from them to resolve the crisis once and for all,” said another official.
Other than bilateral talks, foreign secretary will attend a Rohingya seminar organized by local think-tanks, he said.
Knowledge sharing
Bangladesh has proposed to sign an agreement on knowledge sharing, skill development and innovation with Norway.
Bangladesh has similar agreement with some other European countries and it would be beneficial for Dhaka if Oslo shares its knowledge and help us develop skills, the official said.
Norfund investment
Sovereign Norfund has investment in telecom, power, energy, portfolio and other areas.
Grameenphone received the biggest Norfund investment and it also has interest in power and energy sector, the official said.
Ship building is another area where Dhaka wants to have cooperation as Bangladesh has already fishing trawlers to Norway, he added.
Blue economy
Norway has advanced knowledge in blue economy and Bangladesh wants its cooperation in the field.
This year, a Norwegian ship will assess marine resources including fishing stock in the Bay of Bengal and hand over the report to Bangladesh.
It will be immensely beneficial for the country as Dhaka would know what type of fishes it wants to fish and where to find them in the sea, the official added.