First meeting held on feasibility study of China-aided National Emergency Operation Center in Bangladesh

On March 15, 2023, the first meeting on the feasibility study of the China-aided National Emergency Operation Center (NEOC) in Bangladesh was held at the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh. Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen, State Minister of Disaster Management and Relief of Bangladesh Md. Enamur Rahman, and experts from the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design attended the meeting.

As an important part of China's package of assistance projects to Bangladesh in disaster prevention and reduction, the NEOC was given priority by both countries. In 2022, the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) signed a memorandum of understanding on special assistance programs for disaster prevention and reduction with the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh, which specified the center as one of the priority projects. The completion of the project will effectively enhance the Bangladeshi government's disaster management capacity, as well as the people's awareness and abilities in disaster prevention and reduction.

Yao and Rahman extended their welcome to the expert team, and pledged full cooperation in propelling the project to benefit the people. Still in the phase of information collection and field research, the team exchanged views with the Bangladeshi side on such topics as construction scale and standards.