The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) is planning to sit with the Bangladesh Bank (BB) to talk about some latest issues of concern, including liquidity shortfall and high lending rate.
Though the schedule for the discussion has not been fixed yet, the apex trade-body leaders want to meet the BB governor as fast as possible, as the issues are 'affecting' both business and investment.
FBCCI President Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said these at a discussion titled "Bangladesh: Graduation from LDC to Developing Nation" at Federation Bhaban in the capital on Thursday.
He said Bangladesh has to overcome many challenges once it graduates from LDC (least developing country).
He termed investment as one of the key components to meet the SDGs (sustainable development goals) and the country's sustainable transition towards a middle income country (MIC).
The FBCCI chief also said the rate of interest, which is quite high in Bangladesh, needs to be made business-friendly. Besides, liquidity shortfall in the banking system has emerged as another major concern for the business community in the country.
"We (FBCCI) will sit with the BB governor soon to discuss the issues like liquidity shortage and high rate of interest. We will request him to look after these issues. If the problem lies on the management level, we expect proper measures to settle those down," he added.
FBCCI First Vice President Sheikh Fazle Fahim moderated the function that discussed the would-be challenges and possible opportunities that lie ahead of the country's transition to MIC from LDC.
In the programme, business leaders also demanded separate ministries for investment and SMEs (small and medium enterprises) to cope with the related challenges by involving the business community in the leading role of the proposed ministries.
Mentioning the country's poor performance in attracting FDI (foreign direct investment), President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) Abul Kasem Khan said East Asian country Vietnam received FDI worth over $8.0 billion, but the figure for Bangladesh is only $2.0 billion.
"Where is the lacking? I think we need a separate ministry for investment, and private sector should be engaged in its leading role."
He also recommended doing the same thing for SMEs.
The DCCI chief opined that the business bodies spend most time of a year in fighting for favourable policies and budget.
"If they (business people) are engaged in the policy-making level, the country's socio-economic development will be much faster," he noted.
Talking about the post-LDC challenges, President of Bangladesh Employers Federation (BEF) Kamran T Rahman said the GSP Plus facility will not come automatically once Bangladesh graduates from LDC.
He also said the country has to meet four criterions to be eligible for the facility in the European market.
"The second criterion is a concern for us, as RMG contributes around 80 per cent of our exports although we have a number of exportable items. So, we have to concentrate on other products seriously to get the GSP Plus facility," he opined.
Commerce Secretary Shubhashish Bose called upon the businesspeople to concentrate more on the markets beyond the traditional ones for Bangladeshi products for their market diversification.
"We all focus on EU. But Africa is a potential continent for us, where our export contribution is only 9.0 per cent. Our business community should concentrate more on the region," he added.
FBCCI director and former president of American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Aftab ul Islam said after the graduation (from LDC) Bangladesh might face problems in the IPR (intellectual property rights) front, and the country needs to be well prepared for that.
He also said (the contribution of) SMEs to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) stands bellow 25 per cent, which should be increased to 35 per cent.
Speaking as the chief guest, Chief Coordinator for SDG Affairs in Prime Minister's Office Abul Kalam Azad was very optimistic of addressing the challenges ahead of Bangladesh within the stipulated timeframe of six years.
"We've already formed a team, which has started working in a coordinated manner to figure out the challenges and their way-outs. Don't worry, we'll overcome all odds."
Mr. Azad also asked the private sector to form another team to do homework in this regard, and share their findings with the government.
BGMEA acting president Moinuddin Ahmed Mintu, among others, also spoke on the occasion.
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