DHAKA, Oct 24, 2019 (BSS) – US Ambassador in Dhaka Earl R. Miller traveled to Sylhet from October 21 to 23 in support of the growing partnership between the United States and Bangladesh and the country’s strategic importance to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
Miller toured Chevron’s Bibiyana Gas Plant and met Chevron Bangladesh President Neil Menzies to discuss increasing US-Bangladesh trade and investment, said a press release of the US Embassy in Dhaka today.
During his visit to the Bibiyana Plant, he learned how Chevron, through its subsidiaries in Bangladesh, contributes to the Indo-Pacific Strategy’s economic and security pillars by promoting Bangladeshi energy independence.
He congratulated Chevron on being the largest producer of natural gas in the country, accounting for over 55 percent of total domestic production.
The US envoy also applauded Chevron Bangladesh’s commitment to hire Bangladeshi nationals, roughly 95 percent of its workforce, and its corporate social responsibility programs benefitting the local communities where it operates through economic development, education, and health initiatives.
Miller attended a dinner with Sylhet Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI).
He also met Sylhet Divisional Commissioner Mustafizur Rahman and Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Kazi Emdadul Islam to discuss anti-trafficking-in-persons efforts in the northeastern Sylhet region.
He reiterated that working with Bangladesh to counter trafficking-in-persons and to increase access to services for survivors of trafficking is a top priority for the US government.
While in Sylhet, Ambassador Miller visited the Ratargul Special Biodiversity Conservation Area (SBCA) to observe how US contributions have helped strengthen Bangladesh’s capacity to respond to natural disasters and protect the environment.
Miller’s visit to Sylhet is one of many initiatives of the US Embassy in Bangladesh this year to promote greater cooperation, dialogue, and mutual understanding between Bangladeshis and Americans; and, underscores Bangladesh’s strategic importance to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.