Govt appoints Tareq Md Ariful Islam as permanent envoy to UN in Geneva

Ambassador Tareq Md Ariful Islam, the current Bangladesh envoy to Sri Lanka, has been appointed as the new permanent representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Offices in Geneva. 

He will succeed ambassador Mohammad Sufiur Rahman in the capacity, according to a press release issued by the foreign affairs ministry. 

Ambassador Tareq belongs to the 17th batch of the BCS (foreign affairs) cadre, having joined the service in 1998. Prior to his appointment in Sri Lanka in November 2020, he served as the deputy permanent representative in the Bangladesh permanent mission to the United Nations in New York. 

His other notable assignments include a tenure from 2005 to 2009 in the New York permanent mission, where he initially served as first secretary and later as counsellor. From 2009 to 2012, he was posted at the Bangladesh deputy high commission in Kolkata, India, as counsellor.

At the headquarters in Dhaka, ambassador Tareq served as director general of the South Asia wing, director in the South Asia wing, director in the foreign minister’s office, as well as roles in the personnel wing and the foreign secretary’s office.

He holds a master of diplomacy and trade degree from Monash University, Australia, and a bachelor of science in civil engineering from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). 

His areas of special interest include international peace and security, regional cooperation, human rights, and migration. He is married to Aliya Najma Nur, and they are blessed with two daughters.