Prof. Md. Shahidul Haque
South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance (SIPG), North South University , and Former Foreign Secretary , Ministry of Foreign Affairs , Government of Bangladesh
Md. Shahidul Haque is a Professor at the North South University, Bangladesh since February 2020. He teaches courses on Globalization, International Organization and Negotiation. He is also a Senior Advisor on Migration and Humanitarian Policy of IOM, Dhaka. He is an advisor to a number of international charities and consulting firms.
Mr. Haque served as the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh from January 2013 to December 2019. He has chaired the UN Global Forum for Migration and Development from 2015 to 2016 playing an instrumental role in negotiating the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (GCM) which was adopted by UN member states in December 2018. He had also led as the Chair of the Platform on Disaster Displacement from 2015 to 2016 (a Geneva-based global body dealing with displacement due to climate change).
From 2001 to 2006, Mr. Haque served as the Regional Representative of IOM for South Asia (Dhaka) and the Middle East (Cairo) from 2006 to 2009. Then, he served as the IOM Director for International Cooperation and Policy (ICP) Division of IOM based in Geneva from 2009 to 2012. He had received the IOM Director General’s Award in 2005 for his outstanding contribution to IOM policy, relations, and programs.
While he was the Foreign Secretary, Mr. Haque led Bangladesh delegation to the negotiation with Myanmar associated with the Rohingya issue in particular the bilateral agreement between Bangladesh and Myanmar. He also chaired the Bangladesh National Task Force on Undocumented Myanmar Nationals in Bangladesh from 2013 to 2019. From 2013 to 2020, he had served for two terms as an elected Independent Expert to the Committee on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and their Families (High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva).
Mr. Haque pursued his graduate studies in International Relations and Diplomacy at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, USA (1988). He was awarded Honourable Mention for the Robert B. Steward Prize for high academic achievement at Fletcher, USA. Prior to that he completed his Honor’s and Master’s Degree in Social Welfare from the Dhaka University as a top student. He was also awarded the Dhaka University Chancellor’s Award, the Grant’s Commission Award, and the Chancellor’s Gold Medal from Dhaka University for his outstanding academic accomplishments.
Professor Haque was a Visiting Professor at the University of Delhi from April 2022 to May 2024 and at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi, from September 2023 to May 2024. He has co-authored a book titled “Migration Myth in Policy and Practice” (Springer, 2020). He has written book chapters and articles on Rohingya issue, migration, climate change, human trafficking, and diplomacy published in various journals home and abroad.