Fresh investments almost stagnant amid uncertainty: BOI boss
Monday, 23 November 2009
FE Report
The country is facing a sort of stagnancy in fresh investments as the private sector is reluctant to come up with fresh investment amid an uncertainty, Dr SA Samad, executive chairman of the Board of Investment, Sunday.
"Everybody is trying to improve the business climate to woo more investment," he said at a meeting on 'Bangladesh's Potentials for Foreign Investment' organised by Canada-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CanCham).
The finance minister almost every other day asks to increase the investment-GDP ratio to 30 per cent, but still the investors feel reluctant to invest, he added.
"The private sector is the engine of growth and it should be encouraged to make the maximum investment," Mr Samad added.
The BoI chairman said the government agency has no idea about the demand for public-private partnership (PPP) projects in the private sector.
"In the PPP projects, the private sector is expected to play a dominant role, but the government does not know whether the private sector is interested at all or not," he said.
There should a comprehensive research on why the foreign investment growth has been almost static for a long time, he added.
High Commissioner of Canada Robert Mcdougall said the investors will come if they see the entry is easier for them and they can make money.
"It's very simple. If the investors feel satisfied and they can make profit, they will come to Bangladesh, otherwise, not," he said.
The envoy said the bilateral trade between Dhaka and Ottawa is booming. In the first nine months of the current calendar year Bangladesh exported products worth $642 million to Canada and the two-way trade increased to $1.15 billion, compared with a record $956 million in 2008 also.
Bangladesh exports to Canada ready-made garments, frozen foods and ceramics and imports grains and other foods, pulp and metals. Bangladesh also depend on Canada for telecommunications and energy equipment and services.
Many Canadian firms have already made their mark in many areas including infrastructure, telecommunications, energy, engineering and management in Bangladesh and their products and services are of high quality, he said.
The country is facing a sort of stagnancy in fresh investments as the private sector is reluctant to come up with fresh investment amid an uncertainty, Dr SA Samad, executive chairman of the Board of Investment, Sunday.
"Everybody is trying to improve the business climate to woo more investment," he said at a meeting on 'Bangladesh's Potentials for Foreign Investment' organised by Canada-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CanCham).
The finance minister almost every other day asks to increase the investment-GDP ratio to 30 per cent, but still the investors feel reluctant to invest, he added.
"The private sector is the engine of growth and it should be encouraged to make the maximum investment," Mr Samad added.
The BoI chairman said the government agency has no idea about the demand for public-private partnership (PPP) projects in the private sector.
"In the PPP projects, the private sector is expected to play a dominant role, but the government does not know whether the private sector is interested at all or not," he said.
There should a comprehensive research on why the foreign investment growth has been almost static for a long time, he added.
High Commissioner of Canada Robert Mcdougall said the investors will come if they see the entry is easier for them and they can make money.
"It's very simple. If the investors feel satisfied and they can make profit, they will come to Bangladesh, otherwise, not," he said.
The envoy said the bilateral trade between Dhaka and Ottawa is booming. In the first nine months of the current calendar year Bangladesh exported products worth $642 million to Canada and the two-way trade increased to $1.15 billion, compared with a record $956 million in 2008 also.
Bangladesh exports to Canada ready-made garments, frozen foods and ceramics and imports grains and other foods, pulp and metals. Bangladesh also depend on Canada for telecommunications and energy equipment and services.
Many Canadian firms have already made their mark in many areas including infrastructure, telecommunications, energy, engineering and management in Bangladesh and their products and services are of high quality, he said.