On the occasion and in celebration of the 50 years of Korea-Bangladesh diplomatic ties in 2023, the Korean community in Bangladesh on Wednesday officially declared the week of February 25 to march 3 as a “Korea Week”.
Speaking at a press conference organised announcement of the Korea Week, Lee Jang-keun, South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh, said the year 2023 will be momentous in terms of Bangladesh-Korea bilateral relations and efforts are underway to further strengthen the ties through joint efforts.
To celebrate and propel economic success and celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties, the Korean Community Association Bangladesh is preparing up for “Korea Week 2023” scheduled to be held at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) and Kurmitola Golf Club in Dhaka from February 25 to March 3 with the theme “Stay Strong, March Together”.
The Republic of Korea recognised Bangladesh as an independent state, at a very early stage of the independence, on May 12 in 1972 and the two countries established diplomatic relations on December 18 in 1973.
Bangladesh attaches great importance to the relations with South Korea, the tested and trusted friend and an important development partner. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have been enjoying excellent bilateral relations based on shared values, mutual respect, and common aspirations.
Korean Ambassador Lee said Bangladesh and Korea are celebrating together the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties and there will be many celebration programmes and events throughout the year 2023.
Addressing the press conference held at the Korean Embassy in Baridhara, Korean community Chairman Yong Oh Yu informed that Korean Community Association, along with Korea Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KBCCI) and Korea Trade-Investment Agency (KOTRA) are jointly organising the “Korea Week 2023”
Yong said in “Showcase Korea”, more than 40 companies will participate in the showcase and display wide ranging of Korean products on February 25-26 at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB).
Showcase Korea events also include “K-pop Concert and Taekwondo demonstration and “Korea Cup Golf Tournament”. For K-pop Teams Live Concert on February 25, Boy Group “TAN” and Girl Group “ICU” along with Koean martial art Taekwondo performance team “Nolja” will come to Dhaka to entertain Bangladesh K-pop fans.
In addition, various cultural experience activities, Korean food, electronic products, Korean tourism information will be introduced to Bangladesh people.
Korean Cup Gold Tournament will be held at Kurmitola Golf Club, Dhaka cantonment on March 1 and 2 and an award ceremony will be presented on March 3.
Korean Ambassador Lee Jang-keun in his speech said it is great to see the Korean Community in Bangladesh has voluntarily organised this big event marking the celebration of 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Bangladesh.
In last five decades, diplomatic sources said the bilateral collaboration has expanded to a wide range of areas, including trade and commerce, investment, development cooperation, education and human resource development, ICT, defence, and cultural exchanges. Currently, RMG sector is the pride and it started with Korean assistance in 1978.
South Korea is Bangladesh’s 5th largest FDI provider with USD 1.3 billion invested here. Almost 200 South Korean companies have already invested in various sectors in Bangladesh.
The bilateral trade volume between Korea and Bangladesh has reached another record high in 2022 exceeding 3 billion US dollars.
According to the statistics of Korea International Trade Association, the bilateral trade volume in 2022recordedUSD 3.035 billion,38.71% increased from 2021 which was USD 2.188 billion.
Bangladesh’s export to Korea increased by 22.9% with USD 678 million in 2022 from USD 552 million in the previous year while Korea’s export to Bangladesh rose by 44.1% with USD 2.357 billion in 2022 from USD 1.636 billion in 2021.
