Abul Kalam Abdul Momen (born 23 August 1947), known as AK Abdul Momen, is a Bangladeshi economist, diplomat, and politician who served as

minister of foreign affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

from January 2019 to January 2024. He served as permanent representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations from August 2009 until October 2015. He was elected a member of

Jatiya Sangsad The Jatiya Sangsad (), often simply referred to as Sangsad and also known as is the unicameral Legislature, legislative body of Bangladesh. The current parliament of Bangladesh contains 350 seats, including 50 seats reserved exclusively for w ...

from the Sylhet-1 constituency at the 2018 general elections. Following his election, he was appointed the

by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Background and education

Abdul Momen was born on 23 August 1947, to a

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

political family in

Sylhet Sylhet (; ) is a Metropolis, metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as o ...

. His father was Abu Ahmad Abdul Hafiz, a lawyer, who was one of the founders of the Sylhet branch of the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party founded in 1906 in Dhaka, British India with the goal of securing Muslims, Muslim interests in South Asia. Although initially espousing a united India with interfaith unity, the Muslim L ...

and took part in the

Pakistan Movement The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation the ...

. His mother,

Syeda Shahar Banu Syeda Shahar Banu (; 1914–1983) was a leader of the Bengali language movement and pioneer of the women's rights movement in Sylhet. She also played an important role in the lead-up to the 1947 Sylhet referendum and the establishment of Sylhet ...

, was one of the leading women of the

Bengali language movement The Bengali language movement was a political movement in East Bengal (modern-day Bangladesh) in 1952, advocating the recognition of the Bengali language as a co-lingua franca of the then-Dominion of Pakistan to allow its use in government ...

. He was one of fourteen children. His elder brother was AM Abdul Muhith, a former

minister of finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

, and his sister is Shahla Khatun, a physician and

National Professor National Professor () is a prestigious teaching award given by the government of Bangladesh for outstanding contribution in the field of education. It is awarded by the President of Bangladesh according to ''Bangladesh National Professor Resolutio ...

of Bangladesh. Abdul Momen passed the matriculation exam from

Sylhet Government Pilot High School The Sylhet Government Pilot High School (') is one of the oldest schools in Bangladesh as well as in Indian subcontinent. Founded in 1836, it is situated in the Kalighat area of Sylhet, on the bank of the Surma River. History Around 1830, duri ...

. He attended the

University of Dhaka The University of Dhaka (), also known as Dhaka University (DU), is a public university, public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 1921, it is the oldest active university in the country. The University of Dhaka w ...

and earned a BA in economics in 1969, and an MA in development economics in 1971.

Career

Abdul Momen became a civil servant, serving as private secretary to the minister of rural development, local government and cooperatives from 1973 to 1974; private secretary to the minister of trade and commerce, and mineral resources and petroleum from 1974 to 1975; section officer, South Asia, East Asia and Middle East,

Ministry of Commerce A ministry of trade and industry, ministry of commerce, ministry of commerce and industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce. Notable examples are: List *Algeria: Ministry of Industry and ...

from 1975 to 1976; and director, Office of the President's Advisor on Trade and Commerce from 1976 to 1978. Meanwhile, he completed an LLB in law and jurisprudence from Central College, Dhaka, in 1976. Abdul Momen continued his education in the United States, receiving a MPA from

Harvard Kennedy School The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

and a PhD in economics from

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

, Boston, Massachusetts, in 1988. He taught economics and business administration at

Merrimack College Merrimack College is a Private university, private Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian university in North Andover, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1947 by the Order of St. Augustine with an initial goal to educate World War II veterans. It en ...

Salem State College Salem State University (Salem State or SSU) is a public university in Salem, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1854, it is the oldest and largest institute of higher education on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore and is p ...

, Northeastern University, the

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the Public university, public university system of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes six campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, University of Massachusetts Lowell ...

Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and the

American International University-Bangladesh American International University-Bangladesh commonly known by its acronym AIUB, is a private research university in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This university was established in 1994. It offers several degree programs at the undergraduate and graduate ...

. In 1998, Abdul Momen became an economic adviser at the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF). He left Saudi Arabia in the wake of the 2003

Riyadh compound bombings Two major bombings took place in residential compounds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on 12 May 2003, 39 people were killed, and over 160 wounded (mostly Westerners) when bombs went off at three compounds in Riyadh—Dorrat Al Jadawel, Al Hamra Oasis ...

, and returned to Massachusetts. There he taught in the Department of Economics and Business Administration at

Framingham State College Framingham State University (Framingham State or FSU) is a public university in Framingham, Massachusetts. The university, then known as the Normal School in Lexington was founded in 1839 as the first state-supported normal school in the United ...

until appointed Bangladesh's permanent representative to the United Nations in New York in August 2009. Abdul Momen served as president of the

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

executive board at the international level in 2010. He was vice president and acting president of the 67th

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

. He was the president of the United Nations High-Level Committee on South-South Cooperation in 2014. Abdul Momen's elder brother, Bangladesh's Minister of Finance

Abul Maal Abdul Muhith Abul Maal Abdul Muhith (25 January 1934 – 30 April 2022) was a Bangladeshi economist, writer, civil servant, secretary, diplomat and politician. He served as the finance minister of the government of Bangladesh from January 2009 until January ...

, hoped that Abdul Momen would succeed him as a member of the parliament representing the Sylhet-1 constituency in the 2018 general election, which he eventually won. Yahoo news reported that Abdul Momen said in February 2020 that Bangladesh had "no obligation" to provide shelter to

Rohingya The Rohingya people (; ; ) are a stateless Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who predominantly follow Islam from Rakhine State, Myanmar. Before the Rohingya genocide in 2017, when over 740,000 fled to Bangladesh, an estimated 1.4 million Ro ...

refugees who were stranded in the Andaman Sea on a ship. He asked the UNHCR to take the responsibility.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul Momen, Abulkalam 1947 births Living people University of Dhaka alumni Northeastern University alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Harvard Kennedy School faculty Framingham State University faculty Permanent representatives of Bangladesh to the United Nations Chairmen and Presidents of UNICEF Bangladeshi officials of the United Nations 11th Jatiya Sangsad members Ministers of foreign affairs of Bangladesh 12th Jatiya Sangsad members Academic staff of the American International University-Bangladesh

Background and education

Career

References

Further reading

External links