European Parliament delegation in city
Monday, 24 March 2014
A delegation of the European Parliament (EP) arrived in Dhaka on Sunday night to discuss post-election scenario in Bangladesh and see the progress made in the readymade garment (RMG) industry after ‘Rana Plaza’ collapse at Savar in April last year. Chairperson of the Delegation for Relations with South Asia Jean Lambert is leading the EP team, just ahead of the first anniversary of the catastrophic nine-storey Rana Plaza building collapse on Apr 24 in 2013, which cost around 1,230 lives of garment workers. The other members of the cross-party EP Delegation are: John Attard-Montalto (Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats), Salvador Sedo i Alabart (European People’s Party), and Niccolò Rinaldi (Alliance of Democrats and Liberals). The Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) will discuss with relevant stakeholders the implementation of the measures adopted to improve factory safety and workers’ rights, notably the EU-Bangladesh Global Sustainability Compact. During its two-day visit, the EP team will discuss the post-January 5 national election scenario as well as social and economic issues with key Bangladeshi decision-makers and civil society representatives. The EP delegation will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and representatives of civil society, according to UNB.