News Briefs-(8-1-2019)

President to open DITF tomorrow

President Abdul Hamid is scheduled to open the 24th edition of Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF) at Sher-E-Bangla Nagar in the city tomorrow (Wednesday) - the first one to be inaugurated by the Head of the State. "This will be the first time the President will inaugurate the event, which is usually opened by the Prime Minister," said Avijit Chowdhury, the Director General of Export Promotion Bureau, on Monday. President Hamid will open the fair at 3pm on the day. The DITF was pushed back because of Bangladesh's December 30 national election. A new Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was sworn-in in the afternoon. "The PM is skipping the inauguration because she will be busy," Avijit said. He said participants from various countries, including India, Bhutan, Pakistan, China, the US, the UK, Nepal, Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, the Maldives, Mauritius, Russia, Iran and Swaziland, will participate in the DITF. It will remain open for visitors from 10am to 10pm until February 8. — UNB

BIFFL signs deal under BB's green refinance scheme

Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited (BIFFL) has signed a participation agreement with Bangladesh Bank (BB) under the "Refinance Scheme for Green Products/Initiatives" at the BB headquarters in the capital recently. The participation agreement was signed by S. M. Formanul Islam, Executive Director & CEO of BIFFL, and Manoj Kumar Biswas, General Manager at Sustainable Finance Department of BB on behalf of their respective organizations. BB introduced a refinancing scheme of Tk 2.0 billion to offer as refinance facility against the bank/ financial institution's financing to promote green products/ initiatives in Bangladesh. The rate of interest for the Participatory Financial Institutions (PFIs) will be equal to the bank rate (currently 5.0 per cent) for the refinancing facility. For the borrowers, it will be the bank rate plus margin where the margin can be up to 4.0 per cent based on the tenor of the loan repayment. Md. Abdul Kader, Deputy General Manager at Sustainable Finance Department of Bangladesh Bank, and Mohammad Sagir Hossain Khan, COO of BIFFL, were also present on the occasion. BIFFL, being the largest financial institution of the country, is committed to support green initiatives to uphold the sustainable development in Bangladesh. — Statement