Misdirected hospital benefit

Owners of private 'referral' hospitals are like scores of other businessmen who are guided by profit motive.  They are happy with the fiscal benefits that have been coming in the form of reduced duties and taxes on the import of...

Significant rise in women taxpayers\\\' contribution

Contribution of women taxpayers to the public exchequer has marked a significant rise over the years following their greater participation in businesses and other income generating activities. Among 10 tax-card winners in 2013-14 five were women.  In 2010-11 only one...

Southeast Bank takes challenge to serve women

Banks may know its total clients based on gender. But they may not know how much potential women clients have to make business profitable. Amid such scenario, a private bank has taken the challenge of providing all kinds of banking...

FBCCI questions IMF condition of tagging VAT against ECF

The country's business community continues to put pressure on the government to have VAT (value-added tax) Act 2012' amended to make it 'more business and compliance-friendly', officials said. The leaders of the apex trade body, Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of...

Tk 1.0b block allocation remains unused or spent in other projects

The Tk 1.0 billion block allocation for women entrepreneurs has either remained unused or spent in projects other than entrepreneurship development in the budgets since the fiscal year (FY) 2012-13. Women entrepreneurs, however, claimed that in absence of availability of...

Readying females for overseas jobs

It is indeed a good news for the nation. At least for those who want to take up jobs abroad in a bid to change their lot. Since labour market in Saudi Arabia has been reopened recently for Bangladeshi job...

Unaccounted for contributions of womenfolk to economy

Economic contribution of women, especially in informal sector, yet to be taken into account while estimating the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Women, involved in household work, are widely regarded as 'unsung heros' as their mammoth contribution remained unaccounted for...

Where do Bangladesh women stand?

March 08 is observed every year as 'International Women's Day' (IWD) around the world. Different kinds of events are organised with a view to inspiring women's activities and reflecting on their achievements. The celebrations take place locally and nationally where...

India\\\'s economy: Sunny days ahead?

Moody's has assigned a 'Baa3' rating on India, with a stable outlook. The global credit rating agency's Investors Service said the lower oil prices is expected to alleviate India's high inflation and spur economic growth. Its research report "Global Macro...

Target to produce 3.5m tonnes of fish by 2015

The government has a set a target to produce 3.5 million tonnes of fish by the end of 2015 under its ongoing rehabilitation project that involves Tk 1.28 billion (128 crore). The "Rehabilitation of Infrastructure of Fish Seed Multiplication Firm...

BEZA seeks Tk 65.62b for land acquisition

The Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA) under the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has sought an allocation of Tk 65.62 billion (6,562 crore) for acquisition of land for the proposed Economic Zones (EZs) across the country. The fund is badly needed...

Status of ongoing projects sought for preparing next year\\\'s ADP

The economic relations division (ERD) has requested ministries and departments to submit detailed status of their ongoing and newly-approved foreign-funded projects to help it start preparing the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the next fiscal year (FY) 2015-16, officials said....

Producers reluctant to seek trade remedies under WTO rules

It was more than a year ago when the country's tea producers sought remedial measures from the safeguard authority concerned against huge import of the commodity from other countries. In response to the appeal, the safeguard authority, the Bangladesh Tariff...

Foreign workers to greatly outnumber locals

The Padma Multipurpose Bridge (PMB) Project is likely to create more job opportunity for skilled and semi-skilled professionals than unskilled labourers, officials said. They have initially estimated that more than 1,500 engineers and technicians of international standard will be engaged...

Tour operating companies in dire straits due to unrest

Having incurred massive losses in the peak time tour operators, hoteliers, resort owners and a good number of service providers are worried that they would also suffer further loss in the coming lean period. The January-March period is considered as...

Bearish spell continues as political unrest prolongs

The stock market passed yet another bearish week, extending the losing streak for the third week straight as the investors were in selling spree amid the deepening political strife. The week retraced in all five trading sessions as depressed investors...

Adhesive making industry growing at 20pc rate

Adhesive manufacturing industry in the country has been growing at a 20 per cent rate annually over the last few years thanks to the expansion of shoe, plywood, furniture, packaging and many other gum-consuming industries in the country. "The size...

Protecting the rights of disabled persons in Bangladesh

The subject of the rights of persons with disabilities is one of the least understood or rather one of the most misunderstood issues in Bangladesh. It has remained as one of the most neglected development agenda both by the state...

Challenges to middle-income status

Bangladesh's ambition to become a middle-income country by 2021 faces great challenges. One of these is to provide gainful employment to over 2 million people who will join the labour force each year over the next decade. Moreover, 51.5 million...

Exercising port state control

Shipping is an international business. It cannot operate globally under any unitary regulatory control of an individual state. It has to comply with common standards developed at international forum; and that forum is now IMO - International Maritime Organisation, a...

Sufi Jalaluddin Rumi - the poet

Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi and more popularly and simply as Rumi (1207 - 1273), was a 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic. Rumi's influence transcends national borders and ethnic divisions: Iranians, Tajiks, Turkish, Greeks, Pashtuns, other...

HIV-risk alleviation for migrants and mobile populations

The term HIV/AIDS is known to all of us and different initiatives have been taken for last few years to address it. If a sustainable development goal is set to achieve zero level of HIV infection prevalence, then the monitoring...

Cricket at its most thrilling

Records fell like nine pins in this year's World Cup cricket till the group stage contest. Chris Gayle's 215 score was the highest and first double tons in any World Cup match. De Villers then put paid to Gayle's superhuman...

DoS to clarify MoU signing with Iran

The department of shipping (DoS) has been asked to clarify signing of two memoranda of understanding (MoU) with Iran without prior consent of the shipping and foreign ministries, officials have said. In a letter to the DoS this week the...

People\\\'s resourcefulness and entrepreneurship

The sight of a fruit vendor displaying good quality luscious strawberries at the unlikely street corner no more surprises the Dhakaites. In fact, this exotic fruit announces its ubiquitous presence almost anywhere in the city. Its price too is unexpectedly...

The initiative of the 10 envoys

A group of 10 Ambassadors met Begum Khaleda Zia in the evening of March 03 amidst fear that the government might incarcerate the chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) the following day. The US, Japan and UK ambassadors were...

BB to secure NBFI CEOs\\\' jobs

The central bank has decided to protect job security of the chief executive officers (CEOs) of the non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) for ensuring good governance in the sector. "We'll issue a directive with protecting job security of the NBFIs' CEOs...

Capacity building of core regulators sine qua non

The formation of the proposed Financial Reporting Council (FRC) would not bring desired outcomes unless capacities of the core regulatory bodies in checking audited financial statements of their entities are strengthened further, a World Bank study has said. Terming the...

MCCI suggests raise in tax-free threshold, cut in corporate tax

The Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dhaka (MCCI) has proposed a raise in the minimum tax-free threshold for individual income taxpayers to Tk 265,000. The chamber felt the necessity of raising the limit considering the escalating prices of products...

1,000 MW power shortfall likely during summer

The Power Division has hinted that there might be a 1,000 megawatt (mw) electricity shortfall in the summer and plans to devise a distribution and diversity load mechanism to cope with the shortage, officials said. During summer, peak time irrigation...