Annisul Huq calls for foreign investments in Bangladesh

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FE Report
Business leader Annisul Huq urged the foreign investors to invest in Bangladesh as the country is now ready for investment under the new democratic government.
"Here are a lot of scopes for investment," said the president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) at a seminar in the city Thursday.
The Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands (EKN) and the FBCCI jointly organised the seminar on 'Business to Business Promotion between the Netherlands and Bangladesh.'
The seminar was aimed at informing the representatives of Bangladesh's private sector about the opportunities on offer under the Dutch private sector support programmes, namely Private Sector Investment (PSI) Programme, the Match Making Facilities (MMF) and ORIO Programme.
The Netherlands Agency for International Business and Cooperation (EVD) launched the PSI Programme in December last for entrepreneurs in developing countries including Bangladesh.
Subsidies from the PSI Programme are available for the Dutch and foreign companies entering into long-term cooperation with local partners in developing countries.
The objectives of PSI Programme are to spur financial growth, create jobs and generate income in developing countries. This is achieved by providing companies with an opportunity to make an innovative investment together with a local partner.
So a company from Bangladesh needs to have an international project partner in order to be in a position to apply for the subsidies. The preferred, yet not exclusive, sectors for Bangladesh are agriculture and agro-business as well as information technology.
Speaking as the chief guest, the FBCCI president said the country's business community is moving forward and its economy is faring well despite obstacles caused by the ongoing global economic recession.
He said a panel of business leaders recently met with the Prime Minister and made some proposals to face the recession successfully. "And she assured us of doing all possible things to save the country's economy," he added.
Citing statistics of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), he said in the fiscal year of 2006-07 Bangladesh exported items worth US$ 459.01 million to the Netherlands and imported goods worth US$ 92.95 million from the country. But in 2007-08, Bangladesh exported and imported goods worth US$ 653.88 million and US$ 161.27 million respectively.
"So we've to continue it and I hope this seminar will help keep the trend intact," he said.
Dutch Ambassador Mrs. Bea-ten Tusscher briefly explained the policy objectives of the seminar and urged businessmen from both the countries to take the opportunities.
"This is a win-win situation for all of us," she said.
Among others, Second Secretary, Economic Affairs and Private Sector Development of Netherlands, Michiel Reynders and Mosharaf Hossain Chowdhury, Director of Classic International Limited, also spoke at the seminar.