Bangladeshi expatriates are brimming with enthusiasm ahead of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s arrival here to attend the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly as Bangladeshi diasporas have taken extensive preparations to give him a warm welcome.

The excitement is particularly visible in Jackson Heights, the hub of the Bangladeshi community, where streets and prominent locations have been adorned with banners, posters and festoons ahead of the Prime Minister’s arrival, while individuals and community groups are also arranging programmes.

Much of the organised activity has been led by leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated and associated organizations.

They have held a series of preparatory meetings and coordinated across Bangladeshi-populated areas of New York to chalk out the welcome programme.

The preparations have also focused on maintaining discipline during planned programmes at the airport and in front of the UN headquarters.

According to reports from the community, 34 preparatory meetings have so far been held involving the USA BNP, its affiliated and associated organisations and former party leaders.

At a meeting in Jackson Heights last Thursday, BNP leaders and activists discussed arrangements for the Prime Minister’s arrival in New York. BNP Central International Affairs Secretary Anwar Hossain Khokon was in the chair.

The USA and New York State BNP, Jubo Dal, Swechchhasebak Dal, Labour Party and other affiliated and associated organisations have displayed banners welcoming the Prime Minister.

Individual expatriate Bangladeshis have also put up posters and banners, some featuring images of Tarique Rahman, Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.

The Prime Minister is scheduled to leave Dhaka on Monday and address the 81st session of the UNGA on September 24.

Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam has said Prime Minister’s address will highlight Bangladesh's renewed democratic journey, the rule of law and accountability, global peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, economic cooperation, youth and women's empowerment, education and health, the Rohingya issue, equitable and inclusive use of modern technology and reform of the multilateral system.

The protracted Rohingya crisis will receive particular attention during the visit. On September 23, the Prime Minister is scheduled to attend a Bangladesh-hosted side event on the issue, where he will seek stronger international cooperation for the earliest possible repatriation of the forcibly displaced Rohingyas to Myanmar.

Bangladesh maintains that their safe, voluntary, dignified and sustainable return to Myanmar is the only viable and lasting solution to the crisis.

Climate change will also feature prominently in his UN engagements. On September 23, he will attend the high-level meeting titled “Climate Action and the Just Transition”, convened at the initiative of the UN Secretary-General. 

The following day, he will deliver the opening remarks at a high-level meeting on the existential threats posed by sea-level rise, where he is expected to articulate Bangladesh's position as a climate-vulnerable country, with emphasis on climate finance, adaptation, technology transfer, loss and damage and climate justice.

The Prime Minister will also participate in a high-level meeting on tackling the global inequality crisis, jointly organised by Brazil, South Africa, Norway and Spain, and attend a Bangladesh-hosted side event on maternal and newborn health and midwifery. 

Tarique Rahman is expected to highlight the government's initiatives and future plans for protecting maternal and child health and stress the importance of skilled and professionally trained midwifery services.

On the sidelines of the UNGA, Tarique Rahman is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with the Crown Prince of Kuwait and the prime ministers of Croatia, Bhutan, Thailand, Pakistan and Haiti. 

The talks are expected to cover political and economic relations, trade and investment, development cooperation, the Rohingya issue and other matters of mutual interests.

He is also scheduled to meet the UN Secretary-General, the President of the European Council, the President of the World Bank Group, the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Myanmar, and the UN high commissioners for refugees and human rights. He is also expected to meet the President of the International Peace Institute. 

As part of the government's economic diplomacy, the Prime Minister will hold meetings with senior representatives of Meta, Wall Street and other business organisations. Discussions are expected to focus on Bangladesh's investment environment, opportunities in manufacturing, infrastructure and technology, human-resource and skills development, and quality employment for young people.

The Prime Minister will begin his official UN engagements on September 22 with a welcome breakfast hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres for heads of state and government. 

He will subsequently join world leaders at the opening of the session and attend a reception hosted by the US President in honour of heads of state and government and their spouses. He is scheduled to leave New York for Dhaka on the night of September 25.

The visit also carries added significance for Bangladesh as Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman is serving as President of the UN General Assembly during the 81st session. 

Tarique Rahman is also set to become the third member of his family to address the UN General Assembly, following his father, Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman, who addressed the Assembly in 1980, and his mother, former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, who first addressed it in 1993 and subsequently addressed General Assembly proceedings on several occasions.