Dhaka – Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been honoured with two more prestigious awards for her contribution in social change and women empowerment, according to a report by state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha.

The UN-Women recognized Hasina as “Planet 50-50 Champion”, while Global Partnership Forum handed over the “Agent of Change Award” to her at a high-level reception at the UN Plaza at the UN Headquarters on Wednesday.

President of the Republic of Malta Marie Louise Coleiro Preca and First Lady of the United Nations Ban Soon-taek were also given “Planet 50-50 Champion” and “Agent of Change Award” along with the Bangladeshi premier.

“I feel humbled by these recognitions … I thank UN-Women and Global Partnership Forum for giving me this honour,” Hasina said receiving the award.

She dedicated the awards to the people of Bangladesh as she said that the people of Bangladesh had put faith on her for social change.

“I believe sustainable future of our planet is a shared responsibility of our women and men. We’ve arrived at a time in our history when gender equality is no longer an aspiration, but a real possibility everywhere,” she said.

The path to women’s empowerment has not been so easy, and would not always be smooth, she said adding “But, we must forge ahead with courage and determination.”

“I dream of a world where women’s rights will be respected by all, where all forms of violence and discriminations against women will be things of the past,” Hasina said extending her gratefulness to the country’s women and men for giving solid proof of Bangladesh’s commitment to the Millennium Development Goals.

“On their behalf, I reaffirm our pledge to implement the SDGs, with gender equality at the core,” she said.

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