Switzerland's annual development aid to Bangladesh would reach 16 million US dollars from the present level of 14 million dollars by the year 2000, helping rural growth. Ambassador Walter Fust. Director General of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation said in Dhaka on Thursday.

The aid programme would focus on core areas for sustainable development in sectors like rural infrastructure, transports, land use. water supply and sanitation, vocational education, private sector, small enterprises, and non-formal education, he said.

Ambassador Fust, at the end of a week-long visit to Bangladesh, told newsmen that his country would seriously consider any request from Bangladesh to support any development programme in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in the wake of peace accord. "But we have not received any request for help so far," he added.

Fust came to Bangladesh on March 24 to review the Swiss development programme in the country for designing the next seven years' assistance, which he described as a partnership between Dhaka and Beme.

UNB adds: Giving a bilateral trade scenario between two countries. Fust said Bangladesh's export to Switzerland this year marked a 49 per cent rise than that of the previous year, figuring 17 million US dollar. Some 95 per cent of the export came from garments.

On the other hand Bangladesh's import from Switzerland stood at 32 million dollars, marking a fall by 40 per cent from the previous year.