Staff Reporter, Dhaka : BMCCI Power Lunch titled “Catalyzing Private Investment for Vision 2041: Opportunities for Private Sector in a Smart Bangladesh”, organized by Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI) in collaboration with Chittagong Chamber, was held on Saturday 18th March at the Bangabandhu Conference Hall of the World Trade Center in Chittagong. The Malaysian Ambassador to Bangladesh Haznah Md. was present as the chief guest. BMCCI President Syed Almas Kabir, Chittagong Chamber President Mahbubul Alam, Chittagong Chamber Vice President Syed Mohammad Tanveer, Chittagong Chamber Ex-President Engineer Ali Ahmed and Director Mahfuzul Haque Shah, Chairman of Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation Professor Dr. Md. Salim Uddin, Managing Director of PHP Automobiles Akhtar Parvez was present. The Chairman of Policy Exchange Bangladesh M. Mashrur Reaz presented the keynote speech on the topic.

In his speech, the Malaysian ambassador highlighted the current economic and social situation of Bangladesh in addition to highlighting the trade and economic cooperation between Bangladesh and Malaysia. Referring to the various facilities provided by the Bangladesh government for foreign investors, he said, creating business opportunities in all sectors of Bangladesh is very beneficial for all businessmen around the world. He assured all possible cooperation and assistance from the High Commission for the development of long-term business relations between Bangladesh and Malaysia.

Malaysian Ambassador Haznah Md. Hashim believes that the close relationship between the two brotherly countries has existed since independence. As a developing country, Malaysia has always been a development partner of Bangladesh. Mentioning that Bangladesh is the second largest trading partner of Malaysia, he said that the Malaysian government wants to cooperate by increasing investment in Bangladesh to build a smart Bangladesh by 2041.

M. Mashrur Reaz presented the keynote speech on the topic. He shared the story of the incredible development of Bangladesh in the last 50 years. He said that Bangladesh is working tirelessly to move itself to the ranks of developed countries by 2041 as its development target. Bangladesh has shown success in meeting all the criteria needed to move towards the target. He discussed the potential sectors identified as investment areas in Bangladesh and highlighted Bangladesh’s potential as a consumer. He further added that Bangladesh’s huge working youth population has contributed to becoming one of the focal points for attracting foreign investment.
Chittagong Chamber President Mahbubul Alam said that the main objective of Vision 2041 is to transform the economy of Bangladesh into a self-reliant and sustainable economy where there will be ample employment opportunities for our people. There is no alternative to increasing private investment to achieve this goal. Former president of the chamber, Engineer Ali Ahmed said, Matarbari deep sea port will be a game changer for Bangladesh. Mahfuzul Haq Shah, the former director of the chamber proposed to launch a separate economic zone for Malaysian investors and a direct Malaysia flight from Chittagong. Akhter Parvez, Managing Director of PHP Automobilessaid that everything is now Dhaka-centric when it comes to the industry. Traveling between Chittagong and Dhaka takes a lot of time. Therefore, if the business can be facilitated by decentralizing the activities of various government departments, the investment will be encouraged.

BMCCI President Syed Almas Kabir thanked Oriental Agent Limited for the overall cooperation and sponsorship of the event and said that BMCCI Powerlaunch was started with the objective of analyzing the economic potential and development of Bangladesh while simultaneously discussing the overall positive direction of the current financial situation. Our chamber is working as the mouthpiece of the business community in determining the policies to be done for them to present Bangladesh as an investment-friendly country to the world in this contemporary trend of the fourth industrial revolution.

BMCCI president Syed Almas Kabir also said, currently we export ready-made garments, vegetables, and leather products to Malaysia. BMCCI and CCCI are jointly trying to increase trade between the two countries with an emphasis on the diversification of export products. Digital Bangladesh is now a reality in front of us so the government has now set its next goal to build Smart Bangladesh. Building Smart Bangladesh requires smart manpower and smartness in bureaucratic activities.