DHAKA: Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has named a former commerce minister to steer the country’s troubled economy and kept the defence portfolio for himself as he formed his first cabinet.
Rahman was sworn into office on Tuesday after a landslide election victory, taking over from the interim administration that had led the country of 170 million people since a deadly 2024 uprising that toppled the autocratic government of Sheikh Hasina.
The 50-member cabinet announced in a gazette notification issued late Tuesday includes Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, 76, a businessman and veteran lawmaker who has now returned to the finance ministry.
Chowdhury is tasked with reviving growth after months of turmoil that rattled investor confidence in the world’s second-largest garment exporter.
He had previously served in the cabinet of Rahman’s late mother, three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia, but was forced to resign in 2004.
According to media reports, his resignation came after he had granted permission for Taiwan to open a commercial office in Dhaka.
Chowdhury has not spoken publicly about the issue.
He was also arrested several times during Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule, as her government regularly targeted opposition leaders in cases often decried as politically motivated.
Rahman, 60, has appointed himself defence minister, as his government faces a daunting list of challenges including improving security and healing rifts in a country polarised by years of bitter rivalry.
Bangladesh is squeezed between India – where border tensions are high – and Myanmar, where clashes have spilled over into frontier areas.
Bangladesh is home to more than a million Rohingya refugees who have fled Myanmar.
Khalilur Rahman is the foreign minister, an experienced diplomat and former UN official who holds degrees from universities in Dhaka and the United States.
Khalilur Rahman held the security portfolio in the caretaker government and helped mediate trade talks with the United States.
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He faces the tricky task of balancing regional relations after ties with neighbour India soured during the interim government, and Dhaka deepened engagement with New Delhi’s arch-enemy Pakistan.
India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar congratulated his counterpart on Wednesday, saying in a statement that they would work together to “advance our cooperation”.
Prime Minister Rahman is expected to chair his first cabinet meeting later on Wednesday.
Other members of the cabinet include veteran politicians, former ministers and lawmakers, as well as academics and several party workers.
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