The government is planning to bring the country's around 900 trade-bodies under its scanner to help increase their efficiency and ensure good governance on their part, officials said.
"We are contemplating to work on the issue to ensure more operational discipline in the country's trade associations/chambers," Abdul Mannan, joint secretary of the ministry of commerce (MoC), told the FE.
A high official of MoC said most of the associations/chambers do not follow the operational guideline, mentioned in their respective licenses, and often breach conditions of their licenses during operation.
He further said the ministry will initiate a pragmatic programme for the trade-bodies to increase their efficiency in line with domestic and international practices.
"Tofail Ahmed, the commerce minister, has given us directives to work on the issue in a recent meeting," he added.
An official of the office of the Register of Joint Stock
Companies and Firms said the government does not want that any association/chamber breaks its operational norms, bypassing regulations. For this, the government is trying to ensure timely election and auditing practice in these organisations.
According to licensing conditions, all business associations/chambers have to change their board of directors within the fixed timeframe, mentioned in their license. But most of the time, a number of trade-bodies pass time and refrain from holding election, he said.
Besides, these associations/chambers are bound to audit their financial records and accounts. The practice of auditing is also absent in different trade associations.
The authorities concerned are scrutinising violation of other conditions by the associations, he added.
"Capacity building and good governess are gradually taking place in the country's trade-bodies. These associations are becoming more efficient than the past," Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), told the FE Tuesday. He, however, said, "We will cooperate with the government in this connection, if necessary."
Presently, there are nearly 900 business associations/chambers operating in the country that act as pressure groups to protect interest of their respective sectors and as facilitators of trade negotiations at home and abroad. Thus these representative organisations have been safeguarding interest of the private sector, said MoC officials.
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