VZCZCXRO3393
RR RUEHAST RUEHBC RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHGI RUEHJS
RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW RUEHROV
DE RUEHKA #0167/01 0470643
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160643Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY DHAKA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8301
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1977
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 2761
RHHJJPI/PACOM IDHS HONOLULU HI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000167 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR SCA/PB, INR, S/CT 
DEPT PLEASE PASS PEACE CORPS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR EAID KDEM PTER BG
SUBJECT: SAUDI ARABIA'S ASSISTANCE TO BANGLADESH 
 
SUMMARY 
-------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) The Prime Minister is likely to request and receive 
a Saudi donation to implement governance goals during her 
upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia (KSA). According to the Saudi 
Embassy in Dhaka, KSA does not have a regular recurring 
development assistance program in Bangladesh, but responds to 
particular events or requests with ad hoc donations, such as 
the USD 150 million donated for Cyclone Sidr and flooding 
humanitarian relief in 2007/8. Private Saudi citizen donors 
are apparently required to coordinate donations to Bangladesh 
through the Embassy. Post will arrange a briefing with other 
major donors for the Saudi DCM to assist with setting 
priorities for use of the expected new Saudi donation. End 
summary. 
 
HASINA TO VISIT KSA AND REQUEST SUPPORT 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) During her upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Prime 
Minister is likely to request and receive a Saudi aid 
donation to meet Bangladesh,s development priorities, 
according to the Saudi Deputy Chief of Mission Sami Al Hindi. 
Emboffs met with Al Hindi February 12 to exchange information 
about USG and Saudi development assistance to Bangladesh. 
(Note: The Saudi Embassy does not currently participate in 
donor coordination fora in Dhaka. End note.) He noted that PM 
Hasina was traveling to KSA at the end of February on an 
"unofficial" visit, to perform the minor "umra" pilgrimage to 
Mecca, and had requested an audience with King Abdullah. 
 
AD HOC ASSISTANCE 
----------------- 
 
¶3. (U) Al Hindi said Saudi Arabia did not have a standing 
development assistance program in Bangladesh, but responded 
to particular events or requests with lump sum ad hoc 
donations. Last year, for example, the Saudi government gave 
$150 million to Bangladesh -- $100 million for Cyclone Sidr 
and $50 million for flood relief. A mobile management team 
from the Saudi Ministry of Finance came out to manage the 
funds, and remained in Bangladesh for about a year, returning 
to Riyadh at the end of 2008, he said, adding that such 
Finance Ministry teams went all over the world to manage 
Saudi gifts. 
 
¶4. (U) Al Hindi said 60% of the Sidr money was spent on food; 
30% to purchase materials for cyclone shelters and the rest 
to purchase trucks and other miscellany. The KSA Finance 
Ministry team worked primarily with the Ministry of Food and 
Disaster Management to obtain guidance on what forms of 
assistance the GOB required. The KSA team handled procurement 
of the relief supplies itself. There were no ongoing Saudi 
assistance projects in Bangladesh at this time, Al Hindi 
noted. 
 
EDUCATION PROGRAMS; JOB RECRUITMENT 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) According to Al Hindi, the Saudi Religion Attache runs 
an education exchange program through which about 20 
Bangladeshis a year study in Saudi universities in various 
disciplines - including, but not limited to, Islamic studies. 
 
¶6. (SBU) He noted that a Saudi Ministry of Health delegation 
recently visited Dhaka to recruit 2,000 Bangladeshi doctors 
to work in KSA. Although Bangladesh had qualified personnel, 
they unfortunately did not have the exposure to the types of 
advanced technology they would be expected to work with in 
KSA hospitals, he said. &They found maybe 200 doctors who 
could do the work; that was all.8 
 
PRIVATE CONTRIBUTIONS FROM SAUDI CITIZENS 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Al Hindi said Saudi law does not permit charitable 
contributions directly from citizens but requires all 
donations come through the Embassy. He said the Embassy 
received frequent small gifts for Bangladesh's poor from 
non-government Saudi sources (USD 500 or USD 1,000 at a 
time). He assessed the total of such "small" donations to be 
less than USD 1 million annually. 
 
¶8. (U) Emboffs provided Al Hindi with a briefing on USG 
 
DHAKA 00000167  002 OF 002 
 
 
development assistance to Bangladesh, including an 
explanation of the international donor coordination mechanism 
that avoids duplication and maximizes impact. Al Hindi 
expressed interest in USG activities, particularly in health 
and education projects and cyclone shelters. Emboffs offered 
to arrange visits for him to any USG-funded projects of 
interest and to arrange a briefing for him with 
representatives from other major donors such as the UK, Japan 
and Scandinavian countries. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Al Hindi is personable and intelligent. He knows 
Bangladeshi issues well and expects to remain in Bangladesh 
at least through the summer. We will follow up with our 
offers of project visits and briefings from other major 
donors for him, in the hope that such engagement will assist 
in setting KSA priorities for the most efficient and 
constructive use of the expected new Saudi donation to 
Bangladesh. 
PASI