Staff Correspondent

Labour Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury is scheduled to depart from Dhaka for Geneva, Switzerland on Friday night to attend the 114th International Labor Conference (ILC).

Running from June 1 to June 12, this high-level global summit features nearly 5,000 delegates representing the governments, employers, and workers from 187 member states of the International Labor Organization (ILO).

The official Bangladeshi delegation is scheduled to address the plenary session of the conference on June 8. During his keynote address, Labor Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury will highlight the overarching labor dynamics in Bangladesh, focusing on worker rights, occupational safety, social justice, and employment generation blueprints. Crucially, his speech will present Bangladesh’s legislative milestone regarding the recently enacted Labor Act (Amendment), 2026, showcasing the country's progressive strides toward establishing comprehensive labor welfare and structural rights.

During his diplomatic stay in Geneva, the minister is slated to join several high-profile sideline engagements alongside the main conference events. He is expected to hold bilateral ministerial meetings with the Director-General of the International Labor Organization, the Director-General of the OIC Labor Center, and labor ministers from several partner nations, including South Korea, to discuss cross-border labor migration and institutional cooperation.

Apart from the minister, a high-level six-member state delegation, including Labor Secretary Md. Abdur Rahman Tarafder, is representing the Government of Bangladesh. A nine-member employers' delegation is being led by Fazlee Shamim Ehsan, President of the Bangladesh Employers' Federation, alongside BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan and BKMEA President Md. Hatem.

An 11-member workers' delegation is participating under the leadership of Md. Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, Member of Parliament for the Pabna-5 constituency and Chief Coordinator of the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal, completing the nation's tripartite representation at the global forum.