KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 16: Bangladesh is not only a lucrative market for foreign companies but also a fair and welcoming destination for the foreign investors, a Malaysian minister said here Saturday.
He also said the relationship between Bangladesh and Malaysia should not be valued through the traditional way where Bangladesh is seen as a cheap labour supplying country.
"I think our private sector has wonderful opportunity in Bangladesh as there are 160 million people, the country is number two apparel manufacturer, 8th largest remittance earner showing economic and purchasing power that Bangladeshis have," said Malaysian youth and sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin while attending the Bangladesh cultural night at a hotel here as a guest of honour.
Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI) organised the function on the 2nd day of the three-day business event -- 3rd Showcase Bangladesh -- at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre in Malaysia.
The minister said Malaysian companies have responded by investing in Bangladesh not as a source of cheap labour but as an emerging economic powerhouse in South Asia.
"We want to invest in your infrastructure, education and utilities. We understand the demand for utilities is tremendous in Bangladesh," said Mr Khairy, adding: we have invested not because Bangladesh is a lucrative market but in a country which is fair to the foreign investors and welcomes foreign investment having a wonderful political and diplomatic relationship.
BMCCI president Nasir A Chowdhury, chairman of the organising committee Syed Nurul Islam and the BMCCI secretary general also spoke on the occasion.
Mr Khairy said he does not see Bangladesh-Malaysia relation through the same old traditional perspective anymore but he deems Bangladesh to be a country which has come a long way economically.
"I think Showcase Bangladesh is a wonderful opportunity for the Bangladeshi commerce and industry to demonstrate that Bangladesh has come a long way," he added.
Mr Khairy observed that diplomatic and political relationship is not enough for the bilateral relation, but true relation is fuelled by business, commerce, cultural exchange and people to people interaction.
Earlier in the morning, speakers at a seminar highlighted investment facilities in Bangladesh and invited foreign investors to join hands with Bangladeshi partners to become an important part of its development process.
They said a developing country like Bangladesh must not depend only on the public sector for infrastructure development rather public private combined efforts should be expedited for achieving the development goal.
The speakers representing Bangladesh's banking, insurance and telecommunications sectors made the observations at a seminar titled 'Investment Opportunities in Bangladesh' held at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here.
Managing Director of Infrastructure Investment Facilitation Company (IIFC) Nazrul Islam, City Bank Limited Additional Managing Director Faruq Mainuddin, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director of Robi Axiata Limited Supun Weerasinghe and Chief Investment Officer of Green Delta Capital Ltd M Rafiqul Islam spoke at the seminar with Syed Moazzem Hossain in the chair.
The seminar was organised on the sidelines of the Showcase Bangladesh 2014 being held here in the city.
Speaking at the seminar, Nazrul Islam said Bangladesh has the best businesspeople and a good number of them are very young and foreign investors can find partners there to get involved in large development projects.
He said the government is also accepting foreign investment under the Public Private Partnership in infrastructure projects, power generation and other development sectors.
Nazrul Islam also said BMCCI could be a gateway for Bangladesh-Malaysia partnership and joint investment in Bangladesh's development projects.
Faruq Mainuddin highlighted prospective areas for foreign investment including deep seaport, hi-tech park, shipbuilding industry, tourism sector and leather industry.
He also gave a brief description on overall economic situation in the country.
The Robi CEO described what facilities they are enjoying in Bangladesh as a foreign investor.
He said Bangladesh is the third largest contributor for their company while Malaysia is the largest market for them.
Supun appreciated the Bangladeshi employees in Robi for their talent and hard working attitude. "We always talk about cheap labour of Bangladesh. But I would like to tell on record that we have great talent in Bangladesh. We are very fortunate to have great human resources in the country."
He said they are planning to invest US$ 500 million in the next two years.
Supun said they look for certainty, reasonable cost, collaboration and compliance for investment.
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