India Renews Agreement to Train 1500 Bangladeshi Officers

The Government of India has signed an agreement with the Government of Bangladesh to renew the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for training 1500 Bangladeshi officers from 2025 to 2030. The agreement was signed between the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India, and the Bangladeshi Ministry of Public Administration.

Fostering Collaboration

The agreement was signed during a three-day (28-30 April 2024) visit of a four-member DARPG delegation to Bangladesh, led by V. Srinivas, Secretary, DARPG. The visit focused on mid-career capacity-building programs in field administration for Bangladesh Civil Servants.

India-Bangladesh Cooperation in Capacity Building

India and Bangladesh have enjoyed a strong relationship in capacity building for civil servants. An MoU was signed between the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG), India, and the Bangladesh Ministry of Public Administration in 2014 to train Bangladeshi civil servants. Since then, they have collaborated in conducting capacity-building programs, with the MoU being periodically renewed. The latest agreement extends the MoU by five more years until 2030.

V. Srinivasan reiterated the Government of India’s commitment to collaborate in fulfilling Vision Bangladesh@2041 and SMART Bangladesh through capacity-building programs for a future-ready Bangladesh Civil Service.

National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG)

The NCGG conducts capacity-building programs for middle management, senior management, and faculty development, covering diverse fields of governance like project management, public procurement, blue economy, and food processing.

Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG)

The DARPG is the nodal agency of the Government of India for administrative reforms and the redressal of public grievances. It undertakes activities in the field of international exchange and cooperation to promote public service reforms. The Department comes under the Union Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.

Bangladesh – A Neighboring Nation

Bangladesh, a neighboring country of India, gained independence from Pakistan in 1971 after the India-Pakistan war. India shares its longest international boundary, 4097 km, with Bangladesh, involving the states of West Bengal, Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya, and Mizoram. Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, with Sheikh Hasina Wajed as its Prime Minister and Dhaka as the capital city. The currency of Bangladesh is the Taka.

Through this renewed agreement, India and Bangladesh continue to strengthen their bilateral ties, fostering cooperation and capacity building in the civil services of the two nations.