Infra dev stressed to draw more FDI

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FE Report Speakers at a workshop Sunday urged the government for taking necessary steps like infrastructure development, formulation of standard investment policy to reap the enormous opportunity to attract foreign direct investment (FDI). They said Bangladesh will miss the boat if it fails to ensure equal policy support, adequate electricity supply, communication infrastructure development and port facilities. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Industries Ministry jointly arranged the workshop, titled 'Investment Policy Review of Bangladesh' at a city hotel. The speakers also favoured following foreign investment policies, bilateral trade agreement and bringing change to the corporate taxation structure. Industries Minister Dilip Barua addressed the inaugural programme of the workshop as the chief guest with Secretary of the Ministry Moinuddin Abdullah in the chair. Dilip Barua said Bangladesh has been maintaining more than six per cent growth in the last few years despite global financial recession and that is also helping attract more FDI compared the other South Asian countries. "The present government is industry-friendly. To ensure sustainable industrial development, the government has been providing various facilities including tax facility and re-investment option which is helping to attract foreign investment," he added. Industries Minister termed FDI a major incentive to economic growth in many developing countries like Bangladesh. "As the growing economy in the SAARC region, Bangladesh is offering friendlier business and investment facilities to attract foreign investment," he mentioned. UNCTAD Investment experts Hans Baungarten and Kiyoshi Adachi presented two the keynote papers at the workshop. In his presentation, Hans Baungarten said poor infrastructure is one of the main obstacles for the development of Bangladesh. He also emphasised on more public private partnership (PPP) projects and formulating an independent regulatory body to achieve fruitful result of PPP. Kiyoshi Adachi said in his presentation that pharmaceutical spending in Africa is expected to reach US$30 billion by 2016' which is one of the big markets for the Bangladeshi medicine. "Demand for medicines in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) is expected to reflect rapid economic growth that is outpacing any other region of the world which is a big opportunity for Bangladesh," he added. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) assistant country director Palash Kanti Das, UNCTAD economic affairs official Kalman Kalotay, Board of Investment (BoI) executive member Nabhash Chandra Mandal and additional Industries Ministry Secretary M Forhad Uddin were addressed the function among others. About 150 participants representing the government, other public authorities, the private sector and international organizations were participated at the workshop. The main findings and recommendations of the draft Investment Policy Review of Bangladesh was discussed by participants at the workshop, said the organisers.