Nobel Laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus is under fire after falsely claiming to have received the prestigious ‘Tree of Peace’ award from UNESCO. The claim, circulated through a press release by an organization identifying itself as the UNESCO Center in Italy, was made public on March 21 and credited Yunus for contributions to education, science, and culture.
However, the Bangladesh National Commission for UNESCO (BNCU), under the Ministry of Education, has firmly denied the authenticity of the award, declaring that UNESCO had no role in issuing it. The commission went further, accusing Dr. Yunus of deliberately spreading false and misleading information.
UNESCO’s Dhaka office echoed the BNCU’s statement, clarifying that the Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization had no involvement whatsoever in the award or the organization that issued it.
The misleading claim gained traction after it was reported by several major newspapers in Dhaka and published on the official website of the Yunus Center, prompting swift response from the education ministry.
According to officials, the original press release from the so-called UNESCO Center has since been retracted from media platforms. It was noted that the award was presented to Dr. Yunus on March 16 at the 111th Rotary Peace Conference in Rome—not by UNESCO.
Authorities have emphasized that the award’s misrepresentation casts serious doubts on Dr. Yunus’s credibility and motives, sparking public criticism and official concern.
