Brazilian foreign minister Mauro Vieira arrives in Dhaka on Sunday morning to discuss bilateral issues and strengthen trade and investment ties with Bangladesh.

The foreign minister of South America’s most influential country will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and will have a bilateral meeting with his Bangladeshi counterpart Hasan Mahmud apart from his engagement with business leaders during his two-day official visit.

Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen will receive Mauro Vieira at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka upon his arrival at 9:30am.

He will visit Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi 32 on Sunday afternoon to pay tribute to the country’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud will have a bilateral meeting with his Brazilian counterpart at state guesthouse Jamuna, which is scheduled to begin at 4:45pm on Sunday.

The two countries are likely to sign an agreement on technical cooperation after the meeting.

Three MoUs on sports, agriculture, and defence are also under consideration.

The two foreign ministers will jointly brief the media on the outcome of the bilateral meeting.

Before the bilateral meeting, State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu will meet the Brazilian Foreign Minister at his place of residence.

Hasan Mahmud will host an iftar and dinner in honour of his Brazilian counterpart on Sunday evening.

On Monday, the Brazilian Foreign Minister will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Ganabhaban. The meeting will begin at 10 am.

After his meeting with PM Hasina, Mauro Vieira will visit Square Pharmaceuticals facilities and Beximco Industrial Park in Gazipur.

On Monday afternoon, the Brazilian Foreign Minister is scheduled to deliver a lecture on Brazil’s priority areas at G20 as the current chair.

The event will be held at Foreign Service Academy at 3 pm.

The Brazilian foreign minister together with a business delegation will meet business leaders in Dhaka.

Country’s apex trade body, FBCCI, will host an iftar and dinner in honour of the Brazilian Foreign Minister and business delegation members on Monday evening.

Brazil is keen to export beef to Bangladesh which will cost around Tk 500 per kg.

Data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics point to the production of 8.91 million tons of beef last year, 11.2 percent more than in 2022.

According to Brazilian export data, Brazil sold beef to 126 countries in 2023. China and Hong Kong continue to be the top two destinations for Brazilian beef exports.

Foreign Minister Hasan described the visit of the Foreign Minister of Brazil as very significant.

‘FBCCI will meet with them. We import edible oil and other products from Brazil. Our exports to South America remain largely unexplored,’ he said.

Hasan said Brazil is a big country, and their purchasing power is also high. ‘So there is a great opportunity to increase trade relations with them.’

The government of Brazil earlier congratulated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on her recent election victory.

Brazil expressed its willingness to continue deepening relations with Bangladesh, in favour of the development of both countries, the promotion of South-South cooperation, and the fight against poverty, hunger, and climate crisis.

Brazil-Bangladesh diplomatic relations, established in 1972, have strengthened in recent years.

In 2023, President Lula and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina met on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in South Africa.

Last year, bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Brazil reached the US$2.3 billion mark.

The Brazilian Foreign Minister is scheduled to leave Dhaka at 11:55pm on Monday.

Additional Foreign Secretary (Bilateral) Dr Nazrul Islam will be there at the Dhaka airport to see him off.