Bida set to launch unified portal to streamline trade and investment

Highlights:

• Bida launching unified portal for trade and investment services
• All manual services must digitize within three months
• Portal integrates OSS, NSW, and various government platforms
• Investors currently face fragmented, inefficient service access systems
• Unified system aims to reduce rent-seeking and confusion

The Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida) plans to launch a unified online platform named Bangladesh Business Portal to deliver all trade and investment-related services through a single landing page.

The portal will be integrated with existing one stop service (OSS) systems operated by various government bodies, as well as the National Board of Revenue's National Single Window (NSW), according to decisions taken at the 3rd meeting of Bida's Governing Board, held on 13 April and chaired by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.

As per the meeting, services for business, trade, and investment currently available both online and manually must transition to fully digital within one month, while services that remain fully manual must be digitised within the next three months. 

The Chief Adviser's Office is expected to issue an official directive on this soon.

Bida Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun said, "We've been struggling with OSS for quite some time. When I speak with investors, they consistently point out two issues – services claimed to be digital are often still manual, and they're forced to visit multiple websites or offices for different services."

"The chief adviser has instructed that where a digital version of a manual service exists, the manual process must be phased out within a month. This will significantly reduce rent-seeking behaviour."

The second challenge, he said, is the scattered nature of services across different platforms. "A businessperson shouldn't have to hop from one agency's website to another. Through the Bangladesh Business Portal, they will log in just once. If they need services from Bepza, the system will redirect them accordingly."

Citing a current complexity, he said, "To get a trade licence, you need to visit the Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms; for Bepza services, you go to Bepza's website; for Beza, a different portal. This is not practical, especially for foreign investors unfamiliar with our system. It's frustrating."

"To address this issue, we've decided to bring everything under a single landing page," the Bida chairman said. 

"Investors will arrive at one unified platform, and based on their needs, the system will guide them to the relevant services through integrated software," he added.

Nahian Rahman Rochi, head of Business Development at Bida, told TBS that work is underway to quickly develop the OSS platform as it gets difficult for investors to find the services they need when they (services) are scattered across different websites.

He also mentioned that most countries around the world already have a single portal for investment-related services. "Singapore has Enterprise Singapore, India has Invest India, and Vietnam also operates a similar single-window platform," he added.

The One Stop Service Act, passed in 2018, was designed to ensure that investors – both local and foreign – receive all necessary services, facilities, incentives, licences, permits, approvals, or clearances in a timely manner for setting up new ventures. 

Under this law, several agencies including Bida, Beza, Bepza, the Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, and Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation are mandated to provide OSS facilities, but currently do so independently.

Due to the fragmented nature of these services, confusion often arises among users about where to go for specific services. The new unified portal aims to eliminate this ambiguity.

Bida launched its own OSS platform in 2019. However, more than six years later, businesses still struggle to access services from other agencies via this platform. While Bida's own services are available, many services from other government entities remain absent.

Currently, the Bida-operated OSS platform includes 134 services from 44 agencies. However, several services from key institutions are still missing.

Meanwhile, according to meeting sources, the finance ministry suggested integrating the Bangladesh Business Portal with the NBR's NSW system. 

Additionally, Bida proposed that beyond digital services, representatives from high-frequency ministries or organisations, such as the NBR, Department of Environment, and Bangladesh Bank, could be stationed at the Bida office to provide on-the-spot advice and support to investors.