Developing newspaper industry: owners seek cooperation of apex trade body

The Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh sought cooperation of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry for the development of the country's newspaper industry.
 
The newspaper owners' association made the request at a meeting with the president of the apex trade body Sheikh Fazle Fahim on Thursday, said a press release. 
 
The president of the newspaper owners' association, Matiur Rahman, said the newspaper industry is going through a more difficult time than ever before.
Despite being a service industry, it has a corporate tax rate of 35%, which is a major obstacle to the industry's progress, said Matiur Rahman, who is also the editor and publisher of Prothom Alo.
 
As a result, the industry is struggling and most of the newspapers have to run subsidies in order to survive in this situation, he said. 
The newspaper owners' association called for increasing the income of the industry, reducing corporate tax, decreasing taxation by 10%, and increasing opportunities for newspaper owners to communicate with the government.
 
Sheikh Fazle Fahim said the accessibility of newspaper owners to the government is outside the purview of the trade body. But issues related to the economic interests of the industry, such as the value chain structure, can be reviewed jointly with the newspaper owners' body, he added. 
 
The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry vice-presidents Md Siddiqur Rahman, Hasina Nawaz and Dilip Kumar Agarwala, and its Director Monir Hossain were present at the meeting. 
 
Also present at the meeting were Shamokal Publisher AK Azad, The Daily Star Editor and Publisher Mahfuz Anam, Manabzamin Editor Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, Bonik Barta Editor and Publisher Dewan Hanif Mahmood, Dainik Sangbad Editor and Publisher Altamash Kabir, and Bhorer Kagoj representative Tariq Sujat.