Malaysia Rolls Out Red Carpet for Prof Yunus

Malaysia rolled out the red carpet for Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus upon his arrival here on Monday on a three-day state visit.

"Chief Adviser Prof Yunus arrived in Kuala Lumpur on a three-day state visit at 7:50pm local time by a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight on Monday," Chief Adviser's Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder said.

Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail received the chief adviser at the airport.

Prof Yunus was also given a guard of honour on the occasion.

Earlier, the flight carrying the Chief Adviser and his entourage departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at about 2 pm.

Briefing reporters on the Chief Adviser's Malaysia tour, Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Sunday said migration and investment issues will be given priority during the Chief Adviser's visit.

A business conference will be held on August 12, while on August 13, the Chief Adviser will be conferred an honorary doctorate degree by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), he said.

Prof Yunus will hold a bilateral meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on August 12 at the Malaysian Prime Minister's Office in Putrajaya. After the meeting, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) will be signed between the two countries. 

During the tour, five MoUs and three notes of exchange are expected to be signed. It is also expected that Prof Yunus would join a view-exchange meeting with Bangladeshi expatriates.

A high-level delegation is accompanying the Chief Adviser during his tour. 

The delegation includes Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Touhid Hossain, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul, Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Fouzul Kabir Khan, National Security Adviser Dr Khalilur Rahman, Special Envoy to the Chief Adviser for International Affairs Lutfey Siddiqi and BIDA Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun.

CA to receive honorary doctorate degree 

Meanwhile, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), the national university of Malaysia, will confer an honorary doctorate degree on Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus during his visit to Malaysia on Tuesday.

“Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia will confer an honorary doctorate degree on the Honorable Chief Adviser,” Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Shah Asif Rahman told a press briefing here yesterday.

He said the Bangladesh Chief Adviser will then deliver a commemorative lecture to the students of the university.

On the third day of the visit (August13), Asif Rahman said, Prof Yunus will also pay a courtesy call on UKM Chancellor and Ruler of Negeri Sembilan Province Tuanku Muhriz Ibni Almarhum Tuanku Munawir.

Chief Adviser Prof Yunus is expected to return home on Tuesday.