Anwar Choudhury, 44, will arrive in Dhaka today to become the first British high commissioner to Bangladesh to be born in the country, an embassy statement said.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office in London said the number of minorities in Britain's diplomatic corps was "steadily increasing."

"The appointments reflect the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's commitment to diversity," the spokesman said.

Choudhury was born in Sylhet district which produces many of the Bangladeshi immigrants to Britain.

He left Bangladesh as a child and was educated in Britain as an engineer before serving the Royal Air Force and defence ministry.

Since 2000, he had been director of the "office of the e-envoy" which aims to put British government services online.