Take advantage of liberal investment policy: PM

BSS, Dhaka :
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wednesday urged foreign investors to take advantage of the very liberal and favourable regulatory regime, skilled workforce and strategic location of Bangladesh to expand their businesses.
“The government of Bangladesh is committed to stay on its upward course to attract FDI and maintain investment friendly environment for our economic development,” she said.
The Prime Minister was inaugurating International Investment Forum-2014, organized by the Board of Investment (BoI) at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel here today.
Welcoming the investors to be part in making Bangladesh’s dynamic and growing economy, Sheikh Hasina said, “Please find out for yourselves what Bangladesh can offer”.
She said, “We hope Bangladesh’s economic progress will be a continuous process and we can build on the success of this forum to generate further interest in improving trade and investment in the region.”
BOI organized the Forum attended by about 273 local and foreign investors from about twenty-one countries, aimed at attracting investment in potential sectors by offering investment opportunities and incentives by the government.
Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, president of Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, President of France-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CCIFB) and Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd Tarek Ahmed ELBA, secretary of the Prime Minister Office Abul Kalam Azad also spoke on the occasion while BOI Executive Chairman Dr S A Samad was in the chair.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said despite global recession and economic meltdown emerging Asian countries achieved tremendous economic growth over the last two decades. Bangladesh also attained average 6.2 percent growth over the last five years.
She said many of our neighbouring countries are being graduated from least developed country to developing ones. Sustainable local and foreign investment, regional trade and steps taken for attracting private investment have played crucial role in the economic progress.
Liberal investment policy has created opportunities for the countries to participate in the regional production process in coherent manner, she said. Terming South Asia as the least integrated region in the world, she said though the region is home of one-fourth population of the world but its total foreign investment is only 2 percent of the total global investment.
Per capita global investment is US$ 643 while it’s only US$ 20 in this region. Average inter-regional foreign investment in South Asia is only US$ 300 million which is one percent of total investment of the region, she said.
Sheikh Hasina said South Asia has a huge market potential for investors with middle group people whose income capacity is rising gradually. Size of its internal market is expanding due to increase of the demands of local people. Investment is getting lucrative as export is going up in multiple sectors.
The Prime Minister said in recent years, her government has attached importance on expansion of trade relation based on regional cooperation. Regional cooperation paved ways for infrastructure development, expansion of trade and market access.
Other South Asian nations, like Bangladesh, are taking lesson from the global development concepts and came forward for economic reform for accelerating their growth, she said.
Sheikh Hasina said she gives special importance to Bay of Bengal triangular growth. This growth might act as catalyst to enhance our trade and investment among the South and East Asian nation including China and Japan.
Saying that Bangladesh’s trade prospect is directly related to our water territory, the Prime Minister noted that Bangladesh’s maritime territory with India and Myanmar without demarcation was a big development barrier for us. Now we have found a friendly solution of the problem and every country has got their legitimate share of the ocean, she said adding now we have rights to exploring natural resources up to 354 nautical miles from the coastline.
“Blue Economy” has opened up huge prospects for us to utilize the sea resources,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina said she considers this Forum as one of the major steps for building up an integrated cooperation among the neighbours of the region and enhance trade and investment through discussion.
Pointing out the reference of Goldman Sachs, which listed Bangladesh as one the 11 prospective countries for high economic growth, the Prime Minister said Bangladesh has immense prospect of investment.
City Group has identified Bangladesh as ‘Global Growth Generator’. Bangladesh sovereign credit rate remains static over the last five years, she said.
The Prime Minister said, Bangladesh has offered most competitive and investment friendly policies in South Asia, giving opportunities for unrestricted repatriation of hundred percent foreign capital, profit, technical assistance fee and royalty fees. “Almost all sector are now open for foreign investment,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her government since 2009 has implemented massive reform programmes for businessmen and investors along with giving various incentive packages suiting to the demands of the business community.
Under the reform measures, she said importance was given to power and infrastructure sector. Steps were taken to put in place a modern communication system, develop a global standard IT sector and setting up of Special Economic Zones.
She said the government has already finalized all measures for setting up five economic zones. Process is going for 13 more economic zones. Investment of US$ 3.2 billion came in eight Export Processing Zones (EPZ) of the country.
Sheikh Hasina said, her government aims for making Bangladesh as a middle-income country by 2021. To achieve the goal, she said, the government has been working relentlessly.
The Prime Minister unwrapped some publications of Bangladesh Board of Investment (BOI) on the occasion.