Chief guest of the inaugural session Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in her address said that friendship to all, malice to none is the main principle of Bangladesh’s foreign policy.
Speaking about the importance of oceans Sheikh Hasina said that peace and stability in the maritime domain will be critical to Asia’s rise. She said that due to its geographical location Bangladesh is a bridge between South Asia and South-East Asia.
She expressed the hope that the Dhaka Global Dialogue will act as a platform for the countries in this region on the way of achieving environmentally sustainable peace and prosperity.
In his inaugural address Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr A.K. Abdul Momen said that the strategic location of the country gives it an advantage on which it needs to build further. Speaking about the climate change he said that Bangladesh loses almost 2 percent of its GDP annually due to climate change issues but Bangladesh is an example of adaptive resilience which could be emulated by other countries in the world.
President of the ORF Samir Saran in his welcome address said that this is the Asian Century which will be shaped by stories of transformations in the east and its collective rise.
A large number of scholars, policy makers, strategic experts, law makers and industry leaders and professionals of various fields are participating in the event. BJP National General Secretary Ram Madhav, Bangladesh Minister of state for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak, India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly Das, Former Minister of I&B Manish Tewari are among the speakers during the programme.
The three day long programme is being jointly organised by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS). Over 150 delegates from 50 countries are participating in the conference to discuss some of the most pressing global imperatives in the context of the Indo-pacific region.