FICCI's 60 years celebration

Events to feature two-day investment expo amid sluggish FDI inflow

FE REPORT | Published: October 21, 2023 21:54:13

A two-day investment expo will begin in Dhaka on November 8, aiming to promote the country's investment climate and attract foreign investors.
The Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) will organise the event titled 'FICCI 60 Years Celebration & Investment Expo 2023' at a city hotel to highlight the chamber's activities and contribution to the country's economy.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the event as the chief guest.
Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) is the strategic partner of the event, the FICCI leaders said, announcing the event schedule at a press meet held at a city hotel on Saturday.
BIDA Acting Executive Chairman Mohsina Yasmin, and FICCI President Naser Ezaz Bijoy, Vice President Shwapna Bhowmick, Director and Convenor of the event Mahbub ur Rahman, Executive Director TIM Nurul Kabir and other officials were present at the press meet.
Addressing the programme, Mr Bijoy said the key objective of this event is to highlight the FICCI's contribution to the economy since the beginning of the trade body and its relentless efforts to establish an enabling business environment in the country.
Unlike previous anniversary programmes, this event is going to be a very special one, he said.
"We will highlight Bangladesh's potential as an investment destination and showcase the success stories of our member companies as well," said Mr Bijoy, Chief Executive Officer at Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh.
He said the event will also unveil the report of FICCI research project titled 'Catalyzing greater FDI for vision 2041: Priorities for building a conducive tax system in Bangladesh' and ESG publication named 'ESG Excellence: A Chronicle of FICCI Members'.
Mr Mahbub ur Rahman, CEO of HSBC in Bangladesh, said the event will focus on economic resilience, competitiveness, and sectoral investment opportunities of the country to be displayed in around 40 stalls.
"This event is going to be an important one as it will also play the role of matchmaking platforms among the stakeholders," he said, adding that two plenary sessions on 'Green Value Chain' and 'Investment Climate: Current Landscape & Mission 2041' will also take place.
Ms Yasmin said her office and the FICCI has been working collaboratively to foster the investment opportunities in Bangladesh under a memorandum of understanding (MoU).
"We are very happy to become the strategic partner of this grand event at this milestone journey of the chamber," she said.
Responding to a query from the journalists, she said that following an upward trend, the inflow of FDI fluctuated in the last couple of years. "Foreign investment proposals worth $1.16 billion were registered with BIDA in the last year. However, it declined this year due to the impact of the Ukraine-Russia war among other factors."
The country received $700 million worth of investment this year, she added.
In this regard, the FICCI president added that there are interests shown by the investors but it takes time to finalise them.
"Everything globally is going through uncertainties that are not in favour of investment, especially in other countries. The global FDI is also in a downtrend," said Mr Bijoy.
He added that the unstable currency market in the country is also a factor for getting lower investment than the desired level.
Responding to a query on the exit of some foreign companies from Bangladesh in recent years, TIM Nurul Kabir said the closure of some foreign businesses here doesn't mean a negative atmosphere in Bangladesh.
"The few companies have closed their business … have done so on their own business plan," he added.
"We tried to explore things related to this. The reason is not only the investment climate in Bangladesh, these are usually the part of their global plan," he added.
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