VZCZCXRO3218
PP RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
DE RUEHKA #0919/01 2670922
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 240922Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY DHAKA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9475
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHJJPI/PACOM IDHS HONOLULU HI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 DHAKA 000919 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR SCA/PB AND SCA/RA RVORA 
DEPT ALSO FOR S/GPI KWALKER AND S/P 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PRELPGOVEAIDECONEINVBEXPSCULOIIPBTIO OEXC SMIGBG
SUBJECT: BANGLADESH DIASPORA ENGAGEMENT 
 
REF: STATE 86401 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Mission Dhaka welcomes reftel initiative and opportunities 
for further connections with the Bangladeshi diaspora in the United 
States.  We already engage with Bangladeshi-Americans in a number of 
areas, but there is wide scope for expanded interaction.  Our 
experience is that the Bangladeshi diaspora in the United States is 
a vibrant and active, though currently somewhat fragmented, group. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Our responses to reftel questions follow: 
 
A) To what extent are diasporans from your host country an 
identifiable community? Are there existing diaspora networks, 
organizations or online communities available as platforms for 
outreach? 
 
Non-Resident Bangladeshis form easily identifiable communities in 
the United States and elsewhere outside the country.  Bangladeshis 
(along with Bengalis from India's West Bengal State) have a strong 
sense of ethnic identity, based on language and culture.  There are 
strong Bangladeshi and Bengali networks on line and elsewhere. 
Within North America, the Federation of Bangladeshi Associations of 
North America (FOBANA) holds annual conferences that are 
opportunities to bring together the diaspora groups.  The Bengali 
associations often include both individuals of Indian and 
Bangladeshi origin.  The Bangladeshi community in the United States 
is growing rapidly, as witnessed by the growth in immigrant visas 
issued by Embassy Dhaka's consular section. 
 
B) What is the nature of the connection of the diaspora community to 
the host country?  Examples include kinship networks; educational or 
other institutional ties; financial support as from remittances; and 
direct participation in community or country affairs and civil 
society. 
 
The Bangladeshi diaspora community retains strong ties to 
Bangladesh.  Bangladesh has become increasingly dependent on 
remittances from expatriate workers, and the United States is 
currently the second largest single-country source of remittances 
(over $1 billion/year).  Many Bangladeshis who emigrate return home 
for marriage (or for the marriage of their children), send money to 
family members left at home, sponsor others for immigration, and set 
up businesses in their home areas.   This is particularly strong in 
specific areas of Bangladesh, e.g., Sylhet Division in northeastern 
Bangladesh.   Bangladesh's major political parties all have overseas 
branches, including within the United States.  These overseas party 
branches sponsor visits and gatherings by political leaders from 
Bangladesh. 
 
C) To what extent has your host country or government activated its 
diaspora communities for humanitarian relief?  How would you 
characterize the level of response? If outreach is relatively 
recent, do you foresee opportunities to maintain diaspora community 
involvement in country over the long term? 
 
The Bangladesh Government has not systematically engaged the 
diaspora community in humanitarian relief efforts.  The initiative 
for relief activities comes from the diaspora community groups, who 
often contribute via a relief fund set up by the Prime Minister or 
Army Chief.  Following the November 2007 Category 5 Cyclone SIDR 
that affected southwest Bangladesh, the diaspora community provided 
significant relief.  For example, Bangladeshis in the State of 
Michigan provided over $100,000 in cyclone relief to the then-Chief 
Adviser's relief fund.  During the Caretaker Government period, the 
GOB attempted to mobilize the Non-Resident Bangladeshi community in 
part to break the hold of the political parties over diaspora 
political activities.  The GOB indirectly sponsored a NRB Conference 
in Dhaka in late 2007.  The Bangladeshi Embassy in Washington and 
Consulates in the United States maintain close ties with diaspora 
community groups. 
 
D) To what extent is the diaspora community engaged in long-term 
investment in country, for example micro-enterprise development, job 
creation, entrepreneurship, and institutional capacity building? 
What is post's assessment of the future potential for long-term and 
sustained engagement of the diaspora community in such efforts? 
 
A number of Bangladesh-Americans have attempted to become involved 
in economic/commercial activities at home.  One group of 
Bangladeshi-Americans established a venture capital firm in 2007. 
Another returned to Bangladesh to form an investment company.  In 
many cases, Bangladeshis educated in the U.S. and elsewhere return 
to Bangladesh to become involved in family businesses.   A number of 
younger Bangladeshi Americans have returned to Bangladesh for short 
internships with NGOs such as Grameen Bank and BRAC.  There is 
tremendous potential to expand upon these initial attempts. 
 
 
DHAKA 00000919  002 OF 003 
 
 
E) To what extent is the diaspora community working toward 
scientific, engineering, medical and educational institution 
building? How might diasporans with backgrounds in these fields or 
otherwise affiliated with the Academy, or professional and technical 
societies, become engaged in science diplomacy programs? 
 
A number of Bangladeshi-American academics remain interested in 
developments at home and travel frequently for exchanges.  They are 
active in the Fulbright and other U.S. scholarship programs.  Two 
prominent Bangladeshi academic organizations in the U.S., the 
Bangladesh Development Initiative and the Democracy and Development 
in Bangladesh Forum, have sponsored a Conference on Bangladesh at 
Harvard University in 2008 and 2009.  The growth of private 
universities in Bangladesh has opened up new opportunities for 
exchanges in higher education.  A number of professors and 
administrators of these private universities were educated or worked 
in the United States or Europe.  The Grameen Bank has also embarked 
upon a pioneering health project which will provide other 
opportunities for linkages with the U.S. 
 
F) To what extent is the diaspora community engaged in conflict 
resolution and peace building? Do you see future potential to 
translate diaspora community participation in these processes into 
other priorities governing the bilateral (and/or regional) 
relationship? 
 
There has not been much involvement in peace building activities in 
Bangladesh.  (See answer to question H for involvement in political 
development at home). 
 
G) To what extent is the diaspora community engaged in meeting the 
health, education and welfare needs of indigenous peoples? 
 
So far, the diaspora community has not been particularly focused on 
issues related to indigenous populations in Bangladesh. 
 
H) To what extent is the diaspora community engaged in democracy 
promotion, electoral reform and civil society development?  Are 
there key milestones in your host country or host government's 
development that would create opportunities for such engagement in 
the future? 
 
The Bangladeshi diaspora has been polarized along traditional 
political party lines.  At the same time, there are opportunities 
for the diaspora community to assist with efforts to reform the 
political parties and build institutions at home.    We will look at 
these opportunities as we develop expanded democracy/governance 
programs delivered through USAID. 
 
I) How would you characterize the level of concern and attention 
given to diaspora communities by your host government? If 
applicable, please describe the host government's organization and 
strategy dedicated to relationship-building with its diaspora 
communities. For example, host governments may have established 
promotion offices to encourage diasporans' return, bringing with 
them know-how and financial resources. 
 
The Government of Bangladesh is increasingly interested in 
leveraging the contribution of the diaspora community.  We have 
begun to discuss the possibility of establishing a "Bangladesh 
Foundation" in the United States to help channel the energies and 
contribution of the diaspora into public-private partnerships in 
Bangladesh.  The Prime Minister's son is a member of the diaspora, 
living outside Washington D.C. and married to an American citizen. 
He studied in the U.S. at both the undergraduate and graduate level. 
 One of the PM's international affairs advisors is a professor at 
the University of Virginia.  The Prime Minister's daughter lives in 
Canada.  There have been a number of initiatives to encourage the 
diaspora to remit money to Bangladesh, to become involved in 
lobbying on Bangladesh in the United States, to invest in developing 
resources, and to assist with education. 
 
J) If post has undertaken programs to reach out proactively to 
diaspora community members, please share the circumstances that 
prompted the outreach effort, how outreach was conducted or 
programmed, personal impressions from the experience, and benefits 
from the outreach effort. 
 
Mission Dhaka has been actively involved with outreach to diaspora 
groups, including the Bangladesh Development Initiative (BDI), the 
Bangladesh-American Public Affairs Committee (BAPAC) in Michigan, 
and the U.S. Bangladesh Advisory Council (USBAC) in Washington. 
Working with SCA, we have also pursued initiatives to reach out to 
the Federation of Bangladesh Associations of North America (FOBANA), 
including a speech by SCA A/S Blake at their 2009 annual conference. 
 We have worked with Bangladeshi-American academics through BDI and 
the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies (AIBS).  We are 
 
DHAKA 00000919  003 OF 003 
 
 
providing grants to Bangladeshi scholars to attend BDI's 2009 
Harvard Conference, and the Ambassador will attend that event, along 
with representatives from SCA.  These initial initiatives have been 
very positive. 
 
K) If post has received unsolicited requests from the diaspora 
community, please share the nature the requests, the considerations 
post took into account in formulating respective responses, and the 
outcomes of interaction. 
 
Many of our unsolicited requests relate to cultural exchanges, and 
include requests for visa assistance for Bangladeshi artists 
traveling to the United States.  Our commercial section interacts 
with Bangladeshi-American entrepreneurs interested in doing business 
in Bangladesh. 
 
L) To what extent has post designed or participated in public 
diplomacy programs customized to diaspora community needs and 
interests?  Does post anticipate taking advantage of such 
opportunities in the future? (Ref. A is one example.) 
 
We have focused our diaspora-related public diplomacy interaction on 
academic exchanges.  We would be eager to expand on these 
opportunities.  One possibility would be to tap into Bangladeshi 
American expertise for speaker programs and also to tie-in these 
initiatives with other exchange and visitor programs. 
 
M) In planning future programs and anticipating requests for 
assistance from diaspora community actors, what types of knowledge 
management tools and information materials would be most helpful to 
action officers at post? If the Department were to develop a 
reach-back program to academics in the field of diaspora community 
engagement, what are post's preferences for accessing such a 
mechanism? 
 
The Department could assist us by funding research into the 
Bangladeshi community in the United States.  This could include a 
mapping exercise which would catalogue the existing Bangladeshi 
American groups and associations as well as the state-by-state 
population of the diaspora community. 
 
¶3.  (U) Mission Dhaka points of contact on diaspora engagement are 
PolOff Partha Mazumdar and PAO Lauren Lovelace. 
 
MORIARTY