CA worried about US aid freeze

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus raised concern over the US decision to freeze aid to key projects in Bangladesh, including lifesaving efforts of ICDDR'B, and sought continuity of the development funding.
He expressed the concern when US Chargé d'affaires in Bangladesh Tracey Jacobson called on him at the state guesthouse Jamuna, when various affairs of the country, including elections, came up for discussion, according to a spokesperson for the CA.
Issues of mutual interest and the fallout from the US decision to freeze the work of USAID across the globe were discussed.
Professor Yunus highlighted the role the ICDDR'B -- one of world's renowned health-research institutes -- played in reducing deaths from diarrhoea and cholera to almost zero in Bangladesh and in countries like Haiti in the Caribbean.
Whatever happens with USAID, Bangladesh needs US support during this crucial period of rebuilding, reforms, and reconstruction.
"This isn't the time to stop it," the head of post-uprising government said.
Professor Yunus and Jacobson also discussed the reform agenda of the interim government, the Rohingya crisis, migration, and the country's law- and-order situation.
The Chief Adviser highlighted his recent moves to form a consensus commission and, under its auspices, to open dialogue with the political parties of the country.
"Once we have reached consensus over the reforms, the political parties will sign a July Charter to implement them," he apprised the envoy.
Chargé d'affaires Jacobson stressed that elections for a new government "should be free, fair, and inclusive".
She also enquired about Operation Devil Hunt recently launched by the country's security forces in the wake of unrest.
The Chief Adviser said he has called for reconciliation in Bangladeshi society, urging people to break the cycle of retribution and to create ground for peace and harmony in the country.
"We are all children of this country. There should be no place for retribution," he said, adding that he has instructed law-enforcement agencies to uphold human rights at any cost during their operations.
The Chief Adviser thanked the US administration for continuing humanitarian aid to the one million Rohingya refugees flushed out of Myanmar and living in Bangladesh. "The US assistance is the most crucial aid to the Rohingya refugees," he said.

mirmostafiz@yahoo.com