Govt to promote Bangladesh abroad to attract more investment

There is no denying that before the pandemic we had observed some improvement in attracting foreign direct investment Infographic image: TBS

The Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida) inked a memorandum of understanding with the Better Bangladesh Foundation (BBF) on Wednesday to promote the country overseas and attract foreign investment.  

BBF will work to brand Bangladesh as a potential place for investment and create a bridge between Bida and foreign investors.

In their maiden joint move, the organisations will hold a seminar for representatives from Bangladesh and Italy in April. 

They will conduct several other programmes – roadshows, seminars, conferences, and so on – in more countries to inspire them to invest in Bangladesh. 

"Bangladesh is making good progress in the economy even in the pandemic. We have several targets – attain the status of higher-middle income country by 2031 and developed country by 2041," said Bida Chairman Md Sirazul Islam, adding that foreign investment was crucial to meet the targets.  

"Bida is working to increase foreign investment, and the partnership will help reach the goal," said Sirazul who was present as the chair at the MoU signing event. 

Replying to a query, he said that as per an MoU with Standard Chartered Bank, Bida had conducted a roadshow in China, which was followed by two investment proposals. 

The Bida chairman said foreign investments would have to go up to 3% of the Gross Domestic Product from the existing 1% to achieve the targets. 

BBF Chairman Masud A Khan said, "We will do our best to attract foreign investment through our global network."

BBF will highlight sectors – including agriculture, ICT, electronics, light engineering, energy, power and healthcare – that have potential for investment. 

Better Bangladesh Foundation, a research and development organisation, mainly works on: education, health, the environment, and poverty alleviation.