Sohel Hossain from New York : Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is set to begin his official engagements at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Tuesday (September 22), attending the opening of the General Debate and holding a series of bilateral and courtesy meetings with world leaders and senior international officials.
The prime minister will start the day by attending a welcome breakfast hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres for heads of state and government and their spouses at the UN Headquarters, according to the programme schedule.
He will then join other world leaders at the opening of the 81st UNGA General Debate, which begins on September 22 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The debate will continue from September 22 to 26 and conclude on September 28, according to the UN.
During the day, Tarique is scheduled to hold bilateral and courtesy meetings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, World Bank Group President Ajay Banga and Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé.
He is also scheduled to meet UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Myanmar Julie Bishop, European Council President António Costa, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk and Meta's Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan.
The titles of several of the officials have also been independently confirmed by their respective organisations. Barham Salih has served as UN High Commissioner for Refugees since January 2026, while António Costa remains President of the European Council, Ajay Banga is President of the World Bank Group and Joel Kaplan is Meta's Chief Global Affairs Officer.
In the evening, the prime minister and his wife, Dr Zubaida Rahman, are scheduled to attend a reception hosted by the US president for heads of state and government and their spouses.
Tarique arrived in New York on Monday evening to attend the UNGA session. A Turkish Airlines flight carrying the prime minister, his wife and members of his entourage landed at John F Kennedy International Airport at 6:20pm local time after a stopover in Istanbul.
Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Irene Zubaida Khan and Ambassador to the United States Tareq Md Ariful Islam received him at the airport.
The prime minister is scheduled to address the General Assembly on September 24. Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam earlier said the speech would cover Bangladesh's democratic transition, rule of law and accountability, global peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, economic cooperation, youth and women's empowerment, education and health, the Rohingya crisis, equitable use of modern technology and reform of the multilateral system.
The 81st session is being held under the theme, “Restoring trust, managing transformation: A United Nations that delivers for all.” Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman is serving as president of the 81st session of the General Assembly.
Source: Agencies
