Swedish parliament speaker in Dhaka

The Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, Urban Ahlin, arrived in Dhaka today for a six-day visit to attend the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) assembly and hold meetings with high government officials, civil society and private sector.

He is leading a seven-member parliamentary delegation at the IPU event being hosted by the Bangladesh Parliament, said a Swedish embassy press release.

During the visit, the Swedish Speaker will make call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and have meetings with Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and with his counterpart, the Speaker of the Bangladesh Parliament Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury.

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He will also visit an RMG factory for holding meetings with factory management, workers and trade unions. The Swedish speaker will also observe the effects of climate change and actions to support local communities.

The Swedish parliament – the ‘Riksdag’ – consists of 349 members, elected every four years. Eight political parties are currently represented in the Riksdag and 44 % of the members of the parliament are women.

Urban Ahlin, the Speaker of the Riksdag, has been a member of parliament since 1994, representing the Social Democratic Party which is the largest political party in Sweden. He was elected Speaker after the 2014 parliamentary elections.