US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday said the US does not want to see any government action that might undermine the functioning of Grameen Bank.  “Undermining the bank by any government is unexpected…We don’t want to see any action, which undermines the functioning of Grameen Bank,” she told a function titled ‘A Conversation with Bangladesh’ at International School Dhaka (ISD) in the city prior to her departure for Kolkata.

Referring to the contributions of the Bank towards poverty alleviation, the US Secretary of State said the Grameen Bank is playing an instrumental role in the country where millions of poor women are depending on it.

She said Bangladesh has improved immensely in education and the country’s civil society is continuously playing an important role in promoting democracy, which is a very strong signal.

About the persisting problem in the RMG sector, Hillary said Bangladesh’s failure to probe the recently killed garment labour leader would send a wrong signal to foreign buyers.  “The problems of RMG have to be resolved… the government, RMG businessmen and workers all have to work together to resolve the problems,” she said.

Reply to question about regional problems, the US Secretary said the countries in the South Asia region must find a way of resolving their problems. “The countries must be more practical and realistic… all countries must be more practical to boost their trade and businesses.”

About the US government support to Bangladesh, she said more students from Bangladesh are getting opportunity to study in the US and the US government keen to help Bangladeshi people.

“We’re investing in sectors like health, agriculture, climate change and economic activities in Bangladesh.”
She said the US government is trying to develop clean cook-stoves to cut household black carbon to cope with the adverse impacts of climate change.

About the potential of the country due to its strategic location, Hillary said Bangladesh has an opportunity to play an important role in the region. “You (Bangladesh) are on right track, but you know the problems you face.”

She urged the young leaders to come forward to bring about a positive change across the globe. “The young can change the world… I see the potential of young here.”

Hillary stressed establishing a strong network of social media to cut corruption and ensure human rights in Bangladesh.

The Independent/Bangladesh/ 7th May 2012