H.E. Mr. Mustafa Osman Turan, Ambassador of Turkey to Bangladesh paid a courtesy call to Ms. Sultana Afroz, Secretary to the Government of Bangladesh and CEO of PPP Authority on 21 January, 2021.He was accompanied by Mr. Kenan Kalaycı, Deputy Commercial Counsellor, the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey in Dhaka.

Ms. Sultana Afroz, CEO of PPP Authority acknowledged the development assistance of the Turkish government specially to the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh who were forced to flee from ethnic and religious persecution in Myanmar. She expressed her gratitude to the First Lady Emine Erdogan who visited and provided relief in the shelters of the Rohingyas in 2017. She was also looking forward to the visit of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan this year to attend the “D-8 Summit” and be part of the celebration of “50 years of Independence” and “Mujib Borsho.” Ms. Sultana Afroz, CEO of PPP Authority added that Bangladesh will continue to grow under the able leadership of the Honourable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina specially in the PPP Program.

There has been a growing interest in Bangladesh and Turkey to strengthen the economic partnership between the two countries. The Turkish investors are keen to invest in liquified petroleum in Bangladesh and a modern hospital among other projects, indeed a great opportunity for developing PPP project with Turkish investors. A presentation outlining the roles, responsibilities and achievements of PPPA was given. Bangladesh has a pipeline of 79 projects of which 6 projects have started construction work. PPPA is supporting projects in various sectors, such as transportation, tourism, health, housing and more.

H.E. Mr. Mustafa Osman Turan recognized the enormous opportunities that PPPA is offering to the developing partners as it does in moving bilateral relationship forward. There are many contracting companies in Turkey who are keen to invest in Bangladesh as it offers attractive incentives for foreign investors. They are assessing the possibilities of collaboration with PPP Authority in health sector, energy, construction industry and mega infrastructures that are aligned with objectives of SDGs. He also expressed his interest in facilitating signing a MOU between PPP Authority and Turkish relevant organization.

The two countries are connected through history, culture and the hearts of people. He conveyed his sincere gratitude to Ms. Sultana Afroz, Secretary and CEO of PPPA for the warm hospitality.