Brazil President plans visit to Bangladesh to boost bilateral ties

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has expressed his intention to visit Bangladesh in the coming months, aiming to strengthen bilateral relations between the two nations.

The announcement came during a meeting with Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser, Professor Muhammad Yunus, on the sidelines of the World Food Forum (WFF), organized by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in Rome on Monday.

During the meeting, the leaders discussed key areas of mutual interest, including social business, universal healthcare, social inclusion, and poverty alleviation strategies. Professor Yunus formally invited President Lula to visit Bangladesh, and the Brazilian leader accepted, expressing his intention to make the trip by February next year.

President Lula highlighted Brazil’s willingness to share its experience in providing universal healthcare and expressed interest in learning from Bangladesh’s successes in social business and microfinance. Professor Yunus welcomed the collaboration, calling it “wonderful.”

The discussions also covered potential cooperation in deep-sea fishing, the pharmaceutical sector—especially efforts to make vaccines patent-free and affordable—and climate change initiatives ahead of the upcoming COP30 summit. The leaders also touched upon the youth-led mass movement in Bangladesh in July 2024.

Reflecting on his previous visits, Professor Yunus recalled meeting Brazil’s then-President in 2008 and touring major Brazilian cities in October 2023. President Lula invited Professor Yunus to participate in COP30, which will be held in one of Brazil’s Amazon states to draw global attention to rainforest conservation efforts.

Thanking President Lula for the invitation, Professor Yunus noted that due to his involvement in Bangladesh’s upcoming national elections, he may not be able to attend. He described the elections as a “real and historic” moment for the country, calling it the first free and fair election in 16 years and contrasting it with previous “fraudulent” polls under autocratic rule.

The leaders also emphasized expanding trade and cooperation between Bangladesh and Brazil. On a lighter note, they discussed football, with Professor Yunus noting that Brazilian football enjoys widespread popularity across Bangladesh.

The meeting was attended by Bangladesh’s Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumdar, Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter, SDG Coordinator Lamia Morshed, Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam, and several Brazilian ministers and senior officials.