Foreign Minister Dr. Dipu Moni lodges Bangladesh’s submission on the extended continental shelf with the UN in NY February 25

Sharke Chaman Khan: Foreign Minister Dr. Dipu Moni lodges Bangladesh’s submission on the extended continental shelf with the United Nations in New York February 25. This would be Bangladesh’s most significant claim of the continental shelf in the Bay of Bengal since its independence. The claim of Bangladesh ranges from 400-460 Nautical Miles (NM) in the sea-bed of the Bay of Bengal.The Foreign Minister formally presented this historic submission to the Division of Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea. She was accompanied by the Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN, Bangladesh Ambassador to the USA, Additional Secretary (UNCLOS) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Director General (UN) and other officials of the Ministry and Mission in New York. The submission completes the outstanding obligation of Bangladesh under the provisions of the Article 76 of UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to provide scientific and technical information with the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in support of Bangladesh’s rights to the continental shelf beyond 200 NM. 

Bangladesh has held extensive consultations with Federal Institute of Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) of Germany, GRID– Arendal of Norway, Centre for Coastal and Ocean Mapping of University of New Hampshire, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, and Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, USA for preparation of Bangladesh’s submission. Economic and Legal Section of Commonwealth Secretariat has provided legal and technical assistance in the final documentation of Bangladesh’s submission. Bangladesh has also received advisory assistance from Dr. Herald Brekke, a member of the Commission on the Limits of the Continentals Shelf.

Speaking during the occasion, Foreign Minister Dr. Dipu Moni said that, sea-bed has become an important area of economic interest for all nations and more so for a country like Bangladesh with limited resources and extensive development challenges. She expressed her satisfaction that, Bangladesh has been able to make its submission 05 months earlier than the deadline, i.e. 26 July. She expressed gratitude for the assistance from the United Nations Trust Fund for Bangladesh’s submission.