United Nations Information Centre, Dhaka

The United Nations Information Centre, Dhaka (UNIC Dhaka) is the United Nations' public-information and communications entity in Bangladesh. It forms part of the wider United Nations presence in the country, which the UN describes as dating back to the 1971 liberation war, when millions of people sought refuge in neighbouring India and the UN Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim initiated a humanitarian response. After independence, UN agencies assisted in the rehabilitation of returning refugees, and the UN System has since supported national development priorities under frameworks aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda. UNIC Dhaka's role is to communicate the work and values of the United Nations to the Bangladeshi public, the media, government, civil society and other stakeholders. It disseminates information about UN activities, campaigns and observances, and it supports the coordination of public messaging across the UN country team. The centre operates within the UN System in Bangladesh, which brings together specialised agencies, funds and programmes such as FAO, IFAD, ILO, IOM, OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS and UNCDF, among others. The UN's work in Bangladesh is guided by cooperation frameworks agreed with the Government. The UN in Bangladesh has supported implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, formulated the UN Development Assistance Framework 2017-2020 jointly with the Government, and developed the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025, pursuing an inclusive, gender-equality focused and human rights-based approach to development. The UNSDCF coordinates with the priorities of the Government's 8th Five-Year Plan. As a UN information centre, UNIC Dhaka is not a commercial brand in the conventional sense; it is an institutional communications platform. Its public-facing output includes news stories, speeches, campaign material and information about the Sustainable Development Goals in Bangladesh. The centre works under the broader United Nations country presence, whose leadership includes the UN Resident Coordinator. As of the evidence, Carol Flore-Smereczniak of Mauritius assumed duties as United Nations Resident Coordinator ad interim in Bangladesh on 23 March 2026. UNIC Dhaka's audience spans the general public, journalists, students, civil-society organisations and government partners. Its activities support UN observances and global campaigns, and it helps to amplify messages from the UN Secretary-General and other senior officials. In this way, the centre contributes to the UN's efforts to promote peace, development, human rights and international cooperation in Bangladesh.

The United Nations' relationship with Bangladesh began during the 1971 liberation war. In March 1971, millions of people sought refuge in neighbouring India. In April, the government of India requested the United Nations to provide humanitarian assistance to the refugees, and United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim initiated the response. UNHCR took the lead in coordinating humanitarian assistance to 10 million Bengali refugees in partnership with the Indian government and with the support of UNICEF, WFP, FAO, WHO and the League of Red Cross Societies. After independence, the refugees returned to Bangladesh and UN agencies assisted in the rehabilitation process. Over the following decades, the UN System expanded its presence in Bangladesh to support national development priorities. The UN in Bangladesh has supported the Government in implementing the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. It formulated the UN Development Assistance Framework 2017-2020 jointly with the Government. It then developed the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025, pursuing an inclusive, gender-equality focused and human rights-based approach to development to leave no one behind. The UNSDCF coordinates with the priorities set in the Government's 8th Five-Year Plan. The United Nations Information Centre, Dhaka operates within this broader UN country presence. As the UN's public-information arm in Bangladesh, it communicates the work of the UN System to national audiences. The UN country team in Bangladesh includes a wide range of entities, such as FAO, IFAD, ILO, IOM, OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS and UNCDF, among others. The centre supports the dissemination of information about their activities, as well as global UN campaigns and observances. Leadership of the UN presence in Bangladesh includes the UN Resident Coordinator. According to the official website, Carol Flore-Smereczniak of Mauritius assumed her duties as the United Nations Resident Coordinator ad interim in Bangladesh on 23 March 2026. She brought more than 22 years of experience in development, security, and humanitarian and conflict and post-conflict settings, having previously served as Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Burkina Faso, UNDP Resident Representative in Côte d'Ivoire, UNDP Resident Representative and Country Director in Chad, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Malawi and Papua New Guinea, and Regional Sustainable Development Specialist at the UNDP Pacific Centre in Fiji. The UN in Bangladesh continues to work under the UNSDCF and related frameworks, with public communication handled in part through the United Nations Information Centre, Dhaka and the United Nations in Bangladesh website. The centre's work includes sharing news, speeches and campaign materials, and promoting awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals among the Bangladeshi public.

• UN Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim initiates humanitarian response to refugees from the Bangladesh liberation war

• UNHCR leads coordination of humanitarian assistance to 10 million Bengali refugees in partnership with India

• UN Development Assistance Framework 2017-2020 formulated jointly with the Government of Bangladesh

• UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025 developed

• Carol Flore-Smereczniak assumes duties as UN Resident Coordinator ad interim in Bangladesh

Institutional public-information and communications arm of the United Nations in Bangladesh.

• United Nations in Bangladesh website

  Official web platform providing news, speeches, stories and information about the UN's work in Bangladesh.

• Public information and media outreach

  Dissemination of UN information to media, government, civil society and the public in Bangladesh.

• SDG awareness and campaign materials

  Communication products supporting awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals in Bangladesh.

1. 1United Nations in Bangladeshbangladesh.un.org
2. 2Our Team | United Nations in Bangladeshbangladesh.un.org
3. 3The United Nations in Bangladesh | United Nations in Bangladeshbangladesh.un.org
4. 4Un Entities | United Nations in Bangladeshbangladesh.un.org
5. 5United Nations Information Centre, Dhakawikidata.org