Poverty cut, curbing terrorism figure in discussion
They discussed issues relating to cooperation among the Saarc countries in different fields, including poverty alleviation and curbing terrorism.
During the half-hour meeting with Gyanendra, the two leaders stressed intra-regional trade for proper utilisation of the region's resources including manpower, the AL chief's Political Secretary Saber Hossain Chowdhury told The Daily Star last night.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Hasina pointed out that there is a massive potential trade market in the region with around 150 crore people.
Saber quoted Hasina as telling Gyanendra, "We want a strong functional democracy in (Nepal) in a real sense as we believe it is a pre-requisite for economic development and poverty alleviation in the region."
The king told the leader of the opposition that democracy would be restored through the next election in his country.
Referring to use of the Mongla Port for the benefit of the Himalayan Kingdom, Hasina stressed efforts to maximise utilisation of the port for increasing trade for the benefit of both the countries.
At the meeting with the Bhutanese premier, the two leaders emphasised food and energy security for the development of the region.
They hoped that a big market would be established if raw materials produced in the Saarc countries are utilised by industries in the region.
On energy security, Hasina said it should be ensured first for the development of the region and that Bhutanese hydroelectric projects could be of great help in this regard.
Lyonpo invited Hasina to visit Bhutan, and she accepted the invitation.
AL General Secretary Abdul Jalil, Kazi Jafar Ullah and Syed Abul Hossain were also present at the meeting.