Deals signed with Saudi Arabia, China on first day

Staff Reporter :
Bangladesh has signed an agreement and 3 memoranda of understanding (MoU) with Saudi Arabia and China on an inaugural day (Saturday) of Bangladesh Business Summit 2023.
An agreement has been signed with a Saudi Company to set up gas pipelines through India and Bangladesh under a public-private partnership (PPP) basis.
Besides, two MoUs were signed with Saudi Arabia for developing Rangpur Sugar Mills and Patenga Container Terminal, another MoU was signed with China for infrastructure development.
The Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) also signed a memorandum of understanding with China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPET).
Earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the “Bangladesh Business Summit 2023” to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of the country’s apex business body FBCCI.
She opened the three-day summit as the chief guest at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in the capital, organised by the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
While addressing the inaugural ceremony, Sheikh Hasina called upon the global businessmen and investors to explore and invest in Bangladesh to join hands in making the smooth journey of transforming Bangladesh into a developed, prosperous and Smart Bangladesh by 2041.
The Prime Minister said: “I called upon you all to join our journey towards making Bangladesh a high income generated, developed, prosperous and innovative Smart Bangladesh by 2041.”
The event is being organised as a part of the FBCCI’s 50th founding anniversary celebrations with the aim of creating new opportunities for trade and investment by showcasing the country’s economic potential before a global audience.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Commerce Ministry, and the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) are partnering the summit with the FBCCI.
Ministers from seven countries, including the United Kingdom, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, China, Bhutan and the United Arab Emirates, CEOs of 12 multinational companies and more than 200 foreign investors and business leaders from 17 countries are participating in the summit.
She congratulated the FBCCI for carrying 50 years of the golden path with the smooth and vibrant representation of the Private sector in the development of Bangladesh.
Sheikh Hasina said, “I am deeply amazed that FBCCI organizing this summit at a time when the world trade is experiencing a critical time.”
The Prime Minister mentioned that the summit will pave a platform to forge a long-term productive relationship with participants from around the world through investment, technology, a smooth and predictable supply chain, and integration with Global Value Chain for common benefits.
She reminded the business people from home and abroad that her government has been attaching topmost priority in improving the investment environment in Bangladesh to attract both local and foreign direct investments (FDI).
 In this context, Sheikh Hasina said, “the BIDA is implementing the Bangladesh Investment Climate Improvement Programme mainly to put an end to the bureaucratic red tape. The government is working to implement the action once they are taken.”
She said that the people across the world have been suffering due to the essentials’ price hike and high inflation rate due to the global economic recession streaming from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, economic sanctions, and counter-sanctions.
Earlier, the FBCCI President Md. Jashim Uddin, in his welcome speech, said Bangladesh is strongly adapting the changes in global economic policy under the powerful and visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the architect of digital Bangladesh.
Her extraordinary diplomatic and strategic efforts have paved the way for pioneering a new era of global partnership on the economy, business, climate, and humanitarian priorities, he said.
Jashim Uddin invited global business leaders to join in Bangladesh’s mega initiatives and to take the advantage of South Asia’s fastest-growing economy with a regional manufacturing hub for supply chains and demographic dividends.
“We felt it was the appropriate time to focus the vast opportunities of Bangladesh to the global leaders to expand their business and relocate their industries. This is why for the first time we have organised this mega business event on such a global scale,” he added.
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, Minister of Commerce of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al Qasabi, Bhutan’s Trade, Industry and Employment Minister Karma Dorzi, Prime Minister’s Private Industry, and Investment Adviser Salman Fazlur Rahman, Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization Xiangchen Zhang, Anchor and Correspondent, and CNN Business editor-at-large Richard Quest, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) Lokman Hossain Miah, ministers, diplomats, and representatives of various multilateral organizations were present at the programme.
Business Leaders Panel: Bangladesh – The Big Picture: Richard Quest, Anchor and Correspondent, and CNN Business editor-at-large spoke to the business leaders from major international companies and those responsible for creating a business environment in Bangladesh. There was also a presentation from CNN on the global media landscape and view of Bangladesh.
Richard Quest also spoke with Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen, and Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on their perspectives of Bangladesh’s development journey. The discussion was titled, ‘Bangladesh Growth Story: What’s the Future Roadmap’.