British Bangladeshis voice, connection, community and contribution in the UK

The United Kingdom is an independent country located in Europe. The country's capital and largest city is London. The total area of the UK is 242,495 square kilometers. The official language of the United Kingdom is English. The people of this country speak several other languages as well such as Irish Welsh Scots and Bengali.

Parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy are prevalent in the country. The current monarch of the United Kingdom is King Charles III and Prime Minister is Liz Truss. It consists of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom is a very influential country in the present world in terms of politics, economy, culture, and defense.

It is a member of NATO, Commonwealth of Nations, and G8. It is also a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. The country has the fifth largest economy and spends the third highest on defense. In the 20th century, a quarter of the entire world was controlled by this country.

Most of the countries gained independence from the British colonies. Yet there is still the considerable influence of British customs and laws in these countries. Most of the countries in the world have relations with the UK. A person can travel visa-free to 119 countries of the world using this country's passport.

Being located in the north, the country is much colder and receives rainfall throughout the year. The UK is full of flowering crops due to adequate rainfall. This country is very advanced in science and technology. Besides, the standard of living of this country is very developed due to the economic prosperity.

The UK is a role model of modern civilization to the world. Apart from this, the art and literature of this country are much enriched. World famous poets like William Shakespeare, John Keats, William Wordsworth, and PB Shelly were born in the UK. This country is very advanced in terms of everything an ideal country should be. This is why the UK is a dream country for people all over the world.

United Kingdom and Bangladesh relations

The United Kingdom has friendly relations with Bangladesh. Bangladesh has had friendly bilateral relations with the United Kingdom since its birth. The United Kingdom recognized Bangladesh as an independent country on 4 February 1972. Since then, the relationship between these two countries has increased day by day. Cooperation between the two countries in education, defense, investment, trade, and politics has increased more than before.

On January 8, 1972, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman stayed in the UK while returning home from Pakistan. At that time Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the then British Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath had a good start to the relationship between Bangladesh and the UK.

In addition to political relations, there are indefinable trade relations between the United Kingdom and Bangladesh. The UK has made it clear that even if they left the European Union, there would be no adverse impact on their trade relations with Bangladesh. The United Kingdom has given it the opportunity of tax-free trade until 2029, which will deepen trade ties between the two countries.

The garment industry is one of the major foreign exchange earning sectors of Bangladesh. The surprising thing is that the United Kingdom is the biggest buyer of the Bangladeshi clothing sector after Germany in Europe. Besides, the United Kingdom has been providing defense assistance to Bangladesh for many years. The new C-130 aircraft recently added to the Bangladesh Air Force was purchased from the UK.

At present, one of the obstacles in Bangladesh is the Rohinga crisis. The United Kingdom has been helping Bangladesh to deal with the Rohingya crisis. Over the past four years, the UK has provided more than £320 million to Bangladesh to tackle the Rohingya crisis. The UK is known as a friendly country to Bangladesh since the time of its birth of Bangladesh and this relationship is continuously improving day by day.

Bangladeshi Community in the UK

Like other countries in the world, the UK has a Bangladeshi community. About 600,000 people of Bangladeshi origin live in the UK. People of Bangladeshi origin who hold UK citizenship are commonly known as British Bangladeshis. Among British Bangladeshis, 53% are expatriates and the remaining 47% were born in the UK.

Most of the British Bangladeshis come from the Sylhet region of Bangladesh. During the 70s, many Bangladeshis migrated to the UK from the region. Interestingly, most British people of Bangladeshi origin live in and around London. Birmingham, Bradford, Manchester, New Castle, and Sunderland also have some British Bangladeshi residents.

Bengalis started coming to the UK in the 19th century. During this time several Sylheti people came to London to work in various restaurants. Then slowly their relatives migrated to Britain. However, after the independence of Bangladesh, most Bangladeshis started coming to Britain in the 70s.

British Bangladeshis are a well-known community living in the UK. At present, British Bangladeshis are playing great roles in the British economy, politics, literature, and science.

Who are the famous Bangladeshis in the UK?

Many British Bangladeshis in the UK are well known for their talent and work. Many Bangladeshi-born British citizens have made a name for themselves in education, culture, business, politics, journalism, and media. It will not be possible to introduce all these famous people in a single article. However, we have tried to bring some famous British Bangladeshis into this article.

Anwar Chowdhury: Anwar Chowdhury is a well-known British citizen of Bangladesh origin. He was born in 1959 in the Sylhet region of then East Pakistan (presently Bangladesh). He was the first British diplomat of Bangladeshi origin to be appointed as the British High Commissioner to Bangladesh. Currently, he is staying in Peru and is posted as British High Commissioner there.

Iqbal Ahmed: Iqbal Ahmed is a successful British Bangladeshi businessman. He is the Chairman and Chief Executive of Seamark Group. He founded this business in 1992 which is well known in the UK as a Frozen food processor. In 2014, he was awarded by UK Trade and Investment for his significant contribution to UK exports. He had also been nominated for the British Muslim Awards twice.

Akram Hossain Khan: Akram Khan is a famous British Bangladeshi dancer and choreographer. Till now, he has won many awards.

Lucy Rahman: Lucy Rahman is a famous singer of Bangladeshi origin. She was born in 1960 in Dhaka. She came to UK in 1983. She was seen singing on various television channels. In addition, she performed on stage at various times and won the hearts of the audience.

Wali Tasar Uddin: Wali Tasar Uddin is a Bangladeshi-born British entrepreneur, community leader, restaurateur and social worker. He was born in 1952 in Moulvibazar, Sylhet. He won the Member of British Empire Award in 1995.

Kia Abdullah: Kia Abdullah is a British novelist of Bangladeshi origin. Her famous novels are Take It Back, Next of Kin, and Truth Be Told. Besides, she has written for several famous newspapers like The Guardian, The New York Times, the BBC, and The Financial Times.

What is the contribution of British Bangladeshis to the economy of the United Kingdom?

Many British Bangladeshis are engaged in the restaurant business. Bangladeshis living in Britain are achieving great success in the business sector which plays a great role in the GDP. 500,000 Bangladeshis living in Britain who are contributing to the British economy by achieving success in different sectors.

Bangladeshis in Britain have not only achieved success in the restaurant business but have also achieved success in other important sectors, starting from the medical sector in this country, including the import-export retail market.

The UKBCCI Business and Entrepreneur Excellence Awards are awarded annually by the UKBCCI to recognize the success of Bangladeshi entrepreneurs in the UK. UKBCCI is the British-Bangladeshi top business association. UKBCCI is working to connect successful businessmen of Bangladesh with successful businessmen of Britain.