Bangladesh has become a potential destination for investment, said Sheikh Fazle Fahim, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI). He urged the Chinese businessmen to come forward with more investment in the country. Fahim, president of Bangladesh’s apex trade body is presently leading a business delegation as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s entourage to China.
Speaking at a gathering of more than 150 Dalian entrepreneurs, Fahim said that Bangladesh was always a potential destination for investment in various sectors. Mr Rick Haque Sikder, a member of the delegation of the prime minister’s entourage and also a director of the Sikder Group, in a sideline meeting with other participants, said, “At present, a unique atmosphere is prevailing for foreign investment in Bangladesh.”
“A number of global infrastructure giants have already started joint venture projects in the country,” Sikder, who is also Chairman of PowerPac, added.Mr Rick Haque Sikder also invited the Dalian entrepreneurs to come forward with more investment in Bangladesh.The discussion was organized by China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) (Dalian sub-council) for the interaction between the trade body leaders and entrepreneurs of the two countries.
“As we have a transitional economy, it is imperative that our bilateral ties reflect the potential opportunities and now we have to deepen our cooperation in various sectors,” Fahim told a discussion on Bangladesh-China (Dalian) Trade and Investment Promotion.FBCCI Senior Vice President Montakim Ashraf and other leaders of the apex body attended the programme. Nearly 50 FBCCI officials and entrepreneurs are visiting China as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s entourage.
Hasina was attending the annual gathering of World Economic Forum, popularly called Summer Davos, where politicians, investors, scholars and journalists from emerging economies are attending.During Tuesday’s seminar, both CCPIT and FBCCI leaders agreed that Bangladesh and China have more to utilize the opportunities for increased investment and trade partnership. The two trade bodies also signed a MoU to promote trade and investment between the two countries and organize more interaction between the members of the two trade bodies.
Fahim said, “Chinese businesses, especially investors from Dalian, could tap the opportunities to relocate their businesses in Bangladesh by investing in 100 economic zones planned by the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.”He continued, “Business partnership between entrepreneurs of Bangladesh and Liaoning province of China where Dalian is located has an immense potential in knowledge sharing, joint research on high-tech, development and innovation. The region is home to 56 development zones.”
Fahim mentioned that in 2018, Bangladesh registered record FDI growth at about 67.9 percent attracting 3.61 billion US dollars—a fact that demonstrates Bangladesh is increasingly becoming a preferable destination for investors. “So I urge you to come and invest,” he said.Dalian, a port city in the Liaoning region at the southern end of Liaodong peninsula in northeastern China, is largely unexplored by Bangladeshi businesspeople. The coastal city is a growing economy with a population of nearly 6 million and is one of the most important cities for harbor, trade, industry and tour in China. It is connected with about 300 ports across the world.
