Restaurant industry eyes triple its trade in next 10yrs

Al Amin :
The entrepreneurs of the country’s hotel and restaurant sector are eyeing to triple their trade in next ten years, if the government formulates industry friendly policies.
They also said that the sector’s contribution to the country’s economy is growing up as new investment and jobs have been increased significantly in last decade.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) collected revenues worth over Tk 200 crore in first five months of the current fiscal year and Tk 458.10 crore in last fiscal year, they said.
“We are eyeing to make the trade double in next five years and triple in a decade as the government has declared it as an industry. Now the sector needs government policy support,” Imran Hassan, General Secretary of Bangladesh Restaurant Owners Association (BROA), told The New Nation on Tuesday.
“The restaurant owners are happy as they could get gas, electricity and water supply as other industries enjoy. Apart from Dhaka and other big cities, high-quality restaurants have also been mushroomed in many suburbs and tourist spots,” he said.
He said many chain restaurants are also gaining popularity following the global trend.
Osman Gani, President of the BROA said the sector could also be a source of manpower for hospitality management.
He said the number of working people has gradually been increasing and it will further go up notably in coming years following the economical advantage of the country.
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) data showed that the number of hotels and restaurants in the country has increased to 0.43 million from 0.27 million in fiscal year 2009-10.
Some 2.28 million are now directly involved with the sector which was 0.94 million a decade ago and value addition by the sector rose to Tk 879 billion in 2020 from Tk 119 billion in 2010, the data showed.
Sector insiders said that it is possible to export two crore trained workers from sector yearly, it the government wills.
“The sector has been declared as an industry, which will help to solve many existing problemes. And it is possible to export over two crore trained workers to different countries from sector yearly, if the sector gets government policy support,” said Firoz Alam Sumon, Joint General Secretary of the BROA.
He also said that the sector is playing a vital role in the economy but has been neglected for decades.
“But, the new status will enable us to enjoy different facilities, including taking out loans with easy conditions. We will also be able to enjoy electricity, gas, and water tariffs as per industry rates,” he said.