‘Closed factories to reopen by year-end’

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday directed the authorities concerned to complete the process of reopening long-closed state-owned factories by the end of 2026 through faster privatisation and increased domestic and foreign investment.

He issued the directive while chairing a high-level meeting at the Cabinet Division conference room in the Bangladesh Secretariat, Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Shahadat Shadhin said.

The meeting discussed ways to reopen closed factories and mills, accelerate the privatisation process and attract investors to bring the industrial units back into operation.

Officials were instructed to remove bureaucratic obstacles, speed up implementation and create an investment-friendly environment for local and foreign investors.

Finance and Planning Adviser Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, Commerce, Industries, and Textiles and Jute Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, State Minister for Textiles and Jute Md Shariful Alam, BIDA Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun, and senior government officials attended the meeting.