Dhaka: British Secretary of State for International Development and Minister for Women and Equalities Penny Mordaunt on Tuesday met State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam and discussed various issues of mutual interest.

The meeting, held at the state guesthouse Padma in the afternoon, also discussed Rohingya issue and UK’s support to resolve the crisis, reports the UNB.

The UK is one of the largest donors to the Rohingya crisis, providing £129 million in funding to Bangladesh, since the crisis began.

UK aid also supports all communities in Rakhine State and the UK has led the way in terms of both the speed and scale of its humanitarian response.

On her first visit to Myanmar this week, Minister Mordaunt called for the most vulnerable to be given a say in their country’s future after shifting the work of UK aid there to help disadvantaged and conflict-affected people.

Her words come after the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya in Rakhine State and violations in Kachin and Shan States, all in Myanmar, according to a press release.

In Yangon, Mordaunt met women who are being protected from modern day slavery, trafficking, gender inequality and poor sexual and reproductive health, at the Eden Project and Aung Myin Hmu, both supported by UK aid through the Department for International Development (DFID).

Women training at the Aung Myin Hmu project learn how to make garments safely in a factory setting, so they can go on to work for registered, safe and fair employers and support their families.

Her Myanmar visit follows the terrible violence in Rakhine in August 2017 when the British public donated incredibly generously towards the Rohingya crisis through the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Appeal, raising £28 million, including £5 million matched pound-for-pound by the UK government.

Mordaunt said, ‘I believe the British people want human rights to be at the heart of the work we do and for UK aid to be delivered in the smartest way possible.’

She said the British public showed tremendous compassion for the Rohingya and it is clear to her that protecting those who are still here and supporting them to live side-by-side and in peace in their communities is what we should be focusing on in Myanmar.

Around 600,000 Rohingya remain in Rakhine State. However, many Rohingya have been killed and over 700,000 have fled over the border into Bangladesh.

During her visit, Mordaunt met Rohingya leaders and heard about the terrible conditions many Rohingya are now facing.

‘Even those not caught up in the violence live in difficult conditions,’ she said.