Play store
The United States has invested more than $1 million in preserving Bangladesh’s cultural heritage over the past 25 years through the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP), US Ambassador Brent T. Christensen said on Monday.
He made the remarks during a meeting with Cultural Affairs Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury at the Secretariat, where both sides discussed strengthening Bangladesh-US cooperation in culture, education and people-to-people exchanges.
The ambassador highlighted a recent grant of $235,000 under the AFCP, bringing total US funding to over $1 million across 13 major projects in Bangladesh.
Among the notable initiatives is the ongoing restoration of the Mughal-era Musa Khan Mosque at Dhaka University, which aims to preserve its original architectural features, develop a digital archive, and train young conservation professionals.
Other key projects include restoration work in the historic Shankhari Bazar area of Old Dhaka, conservation efforts at Lalbagh Fort, and modernisation of the Varendra Research Museum.
The fund has also supported documentation of Bangladesh’s intangible heritage, including Baul music, Jamdani weaving and traditional metal casting techniques.
During the meeting, both sides also discussed potential collaboration on a joint US-Bangladesh Cultural Festival, artist exchange programmes and broader cultural cooperation.
The US side noted that a proposed bilateral cultural cooperation agreement is currently under administrative and legal review and expressed interest in expediting the process.
The ambassador also showed interest in preserving the literary works of Bangladesh’s National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam through the US Library of Congress.
Officials from both the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the US mission were present at the meeting.
