The government has moved to increase the participation of women in the country's economic activities especially in the industrial sector with taking some revolutionary steps, officials said.
As part of the move, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in a meeting with BEZA, BEPZA and BHTPA has already asked the authorities concerned to take necessary measures in this regard, they added.
From now, they said, the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA), Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) and Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority (BHTPA) will have to keep about 30 per cent of their plots and spaces for women entrepreneurs.
Besides, the government is planning to set up a special economic zone or a hi-tech park in the country only for women entrepreneurs, the officials said.
The BEZA, BEPZA and BHTPA will take necessary measures accordingly, sources concerned said.
"We are ready to allocate a piece of land for establishing a special economic zone only for women entrepreneurs if we get any proposal from them. The site would be in Mirsarai of Chittagong," Executive Chairman of BEZA Paban Chowdhury told the FE on Friday.
"We already discussed the issue with the country's women chamber leaders," he added. He, however, said the PMO has asked the BEZA to keep necessary spaces/plots in the government EZs.
Presently, there is no specific allocation in the proposed economic zones, export processing zones and hi-tech parks, the officials concerned said.
The government wants to make women more useful in the country's economy especially in the industrial sector for the country's overall economic growth, a high official of Board of Investment (BoI) said.
Only 13.30 per cent women hold higher posts or policy-making positions in the country's industrial and service sectors, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) data.
In the industrial sector, some 2,243 women are holding top or policy-making positions in the urban area while 2,741 women in the service sector, the BBS data showed.
Overall women's participation in the country's economic sector is yet to reach desired level. But their participation in the country's different business sectors is gradually increasing. A good number of women have been holding top/policy-making posts in the industrial and service sectors, the officials said.
The government has so far given approval to proposals for establishing some 47 economic zones including 37 in the public sector across the country. The prime minister recently laid foundations of 10 EZs.
A hi-tech park is being set up in Kaliakoir upazila of Gazipur district. Besides, the government has already moved to build more hi-tech parks in the country.
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