Bangladesh missions abroad should act as catalysts to promote the economic growth through luring foreign direct investment and expanding trade, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said on Tuesday.

While addressing a seminar titled "promoting trade and investment", the minister also urged the officials of the country's foreign missions to gear up economic diplomacy.

The foreign ministry, Bangladesh Investment Development Authority and Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority jointly organised the seminar for their senior officials.

Dr Momen said, "We have achieved 16 per cent growth in FDI. But to attain the desired growth to be a middle-income country, this is not enough. So, foreign missions should play a proactive role in attracting FDI."

Asking the foreign ministry officials to concentrate on branding Bangladesh, he said as the Bangladesh missions are the gateways to the foreigners, they have to highlight the country through briefing the potential foreign investors about a huge investment opportunity here.

Apart from boosting trade and investment, the minister said, the foreign ministry has launched programmes to expedite the process of manpower recruitment from Bangladesh.

"We have introduced skill development programmes in the countries where the number of low skilled Bangladeshis is high so that they can get better opportunity."

The foreign minister informed that such programmes have already started in places like Jeddah, Dubai and Riyadh.