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Bangladesh Economic & Infrastructure Development - Updates & Discussions

Thanks Brother - that is one of the many small residential neighborhoods built recently in the North part of Dhaka, within the last decade. Other than this upper middle class neighborhood, Dhaka also now boasts many large high rise neighborhoods built by the govt. for lower middle income folks.

iu
iu

Well, that canal-side type construction and its associated non-chaotic construction for the higher income group should have been replicated for the lower income group. You may have seen my objections to high rises and skyscrapers. :) You live in USA and you will have seen the niceness of the suburbs-type housing layout. Do you not wish for such areas to be in Bangladesh for all income groups ? :)

I believe that is the plan. Govt. is looking at a pilot project to introduce Hydrogen Fuel infra in association with the Japanese Govt. which will mainly be used by public transport.

Nice !
 
Well, that canal-side type construction and its associated non-chaotic construction for the higher income group should have been replicated for the lower income group. You may have seen my objections to high rises and skyscrapers. :) You live in USA and you will have seen the niceness of the suburbs-type housing layout. Do you not wish for such areas to be in Bangladesh for all income groups ? :)

Lower income groups will unfortunately not get the same suburbs-type housing layout in Bangladesh, land prices are too high in Dhaka at least, even higher than most places in the US, demand is super high.

What housing the lower income people will get is hopefully clean, organized, free of trash, noise and filth, with clean water and reliable utilities (and with some privacy hopefully). Kind of like what exists in Singapore as lower income HDB flats, because land use density in Bangladesh is more than Singapore for sure. That is a nice goal for now. In fact some Bangladesh high rise housing was designed partially by taking HDB flats as inspiration. Won't meet with your approval unfortunately but in Bangladesh it is what it is.

If you visit the Bangladesh infra thread (sticky section) then you will see I post some pictures for village low income housing as well (especially for displaced people). Those are tin-roofed and brick-walled housing very common in Bangladesh and all across India/Pakistan too (minus the tin roof).

Singapore low income HDB flats.
iu


Some of the better HDB flats sell for a million Sing dollars each - land/space is at a premium in both S'pore and Bangladesh, so this is reality.
iu
 
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Bangladesh to build 1800 KM of new rights-of-way and trackage



By Anwar Hossain


As part of the government’s long-term plan to expand the railway network throughout the country, 1800 kilometres of new rail lines will be built by 2045.

All single rail tracks will be upgraded to double line and meter gauge rail lines will be transformed into dual gauge. The master plan will be implemented in six steps over a period of 30 years (2016-2045). Most of the development work of the railway master plan will be completed in the first five steps, according to the railways master plan.

As per the master plan, it is learnt that in the first phase, 438.52 kilometers of railway tracks will be laid. In this phase there is construction of 213 kilometers (km) of Bhanga-Barishal-Payra rail line, 10.01 km rail line of Akhaura-Agartola, 86.51 km Bogura-Jamtoil, Chilahati-Chilahati Border 7 km, Jalanihat-CUET-Kaptai 42 km, Chattogram Bay terminal connecting rail line 16 km, Darshana- Meherpur-Mujibnagar 26 km, Feni-Mirsarai Economic Zone 30 km, and Jamalpur Economic Zone 8 km.

In the second phase (2021-2025), 526 km rail tracks will be laid, of which, 230 km high speed railway between Dhaka-Chattogram, 100 km circular railway track around the capital city, 10 km Kushtia bypass rail line, six km Ishwardi-EPZ rail line, 18 km connecting rail line between Moheshkhali and Matarbari, 85 km Navaran-Satkhira rail line, 30 km Chhatakbazar- Sunamganj rail line, 15 km Satkhira-Munshiganj rail line and 32 km Jamalpur-Sherpur rail line.

The third phase (2026-2030) will be of 165 km, of which 25 km for Payra-Kuakata, 20 km bypass Bhairab-Abdulpur-Jamtoil-Kaonia rail line, 70 km Tungipara-Mongla-Fakirhat and 70 km Panchagarh-Banglabandha rail tracks will be laid. In the fourth phase (2031-2035) a total of 485 km rail lines will be laid, of which there will be 40 km underground subway between Narayanganj and Tongi, 100 kilometer circular railway around port city Chattogram, 60 km Nazirhat-Khagrachhari, 40 km Hathazari-Rangamati, 25 km Dohazari-Bandarban, 60 km Panchagarh-Chilahati-Hatiabandha, 80 km Rohanpur-Joypurhat and 80 km Jessore-Magura-Langalbandha-Pangsha.

In the fifth phase (2036-2040), a total of 115 km new rail lines will be laid to connect Joydevpur to Paturia via Dhamrai and Manikganj with 90 km rail line, Madhukhali and Jessore via Magura with 65 km rail line. Besides, in phase five, 1638.41 km rail line will be upgraded to dual gauge. In first phase, 177 km of Akhaura-Sylhet, 55.22 km Parbatipur-Kaonia and 33.31 km of Sylhet-Chhatak rail line will be upgraded.

In the second phase, 128 km Tongi-Bhairab Bazar, Bhairab to Akhaura 66 km, 159.2 km double rail line from Laksham to Chattogram will upgraded to dual gauge. Besides, 39.93 km Santahar-Bogura, 147 km Joydevpur to Jamalpur, 16.1 km Dhaka-Narayanganj, 40.60 Sholosahar to Dohazari single rail line will be upgraded to dual gauge.

In the third phase, a total of 364.2 km, in the fourth phase 214.64 km, and in the fifth phase, 84.33 km rail lines will upgraded to dual gauge in different routes across the country. The master plan added 946 km rail line in three phases. Inter Container depot at Dhirasram, Uttara EPZ, Mongla and Ishwardi, Darshana and Shahbazpur will be constructed.

Apart from these, six new workshops and six new railway bridges will also be constructed under the master plan. These workshops are- Narayanganj locomotive workshop, Narayanganj demo workshop, Saidpur new unit, Chattogram locomotive workshop, Rajbari locomotive workshop, Mymensingh carriage and wagon workshop.

Among the new railway bridges, the master plan includes bridge construction at Jamuna rail bridge, Karnaphuli rail bridge, Teesta rail bridge, Hardinge rail bridge, Padma rail bridge at Moukuri- Dhalarchar point, and Fulchhari-Bahadurbadghat rail bridge. Railways secretary, Md Moffazol Hossain, told Bangladesh Post, it is a long-term plan, but once it is implemented in totality, it will change the transportation scenario of the country. According to railway reports, more than 32 percent area of the country is in the railway network. The state-owned organization provides both passenger and cargo services through 502 stations.
 
MV Bay One Cruise vessel is currently operating on a cruise service from Cox's Bazar to St. Martin's Island off the shore of Southern Bangladesh.

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Railways has decided to import tourist coaches as part of a special initiative to transport passengers to the tourist city of Cox's Bazar after completion of construction of Dohazari-Cox's Bazar railway. Luxury coaches will be procured under the project 'Procurement of 54 Broad Gauge Passenger Carriage for Operating Tourist Train for Tourist of Cox's Bazar'. The total cost of the project has been estimated at Tk 441.51 crore.

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Cement Manufacturing : Bangladesh Striving for Global standard
Marjiya Baktyer Ahmed

A new resurgent Bangladesh aspires to emerge as an infrastructural icon in the realm of development. Shah Cement, the market leader in the cement industry is leading the way in this initiative. The company has already invested in World’s Largest Vertical Roller Mill Technology recognized by Guinness World Records. In an exclusive interview with ICE Business Times, Hafiz Sikander, Director Operations of Shah Cement illuminates us on the company’s pursuit for technological excellence and its dream for building a prosperous Bangladesh.

You’ve served Shah Cement for more than 15 years. Can you tell us about the operations you oversee and are in charge of?
I look after the total manufacturing operation, starting from implementing and improvising the vision of the company by strengthening the leadership; to improve the quality of living across Bangladesh. Shah Cement has always led the way in new innovations. The newest addition to its efforts is the World’s Largest Vertical Roller Mill (VRM).

In the last 18 years we evolved from a basic Ball Mill to the present having state of art AI enabled World’s Largest VRM & Horizontal Roller Press. Shah Cement Industries Ltd. is the largest cement producing plant in Bangladesh, now with a capacity of 10 million metric tons per annum.
At Shah Cement, safety and quality gets the highest priority. I am directly involved in the selection and sourcing of raw materials that stand up to the quality we aspire towards. Through strict monitoring and control of product quality in all the stages, we ensure that quality is never compromised, and with the implementation of Level-3 automation, we have the capacity to monitor and control operations remotely.

Shah Cement has achieved an un-beaten track record of continuous product conformance to quality standard in all testing labs for the last 18 years. We have successfully established a culture of continuous development in all operation parameters. These parameters can be fine-tuned to meet specific customer requirements and minimize lead time between product ordering to customers receiving them.

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How have you shaped the company’s Quality Management Policy for Shah Cement to become an industry leader?
We believe that we provide a construction solution to the customers and treat quality as “a pursuit of excellence”. Our employees are dedicated to quality training in order to ensure our reputation for outstanding quality can permeate throughout the country. Being a market leader for more than a decade at a stretch means, we needed to work in a way that the customers trust the quality of Shah Cement and we have managed to do that successfully so far.

As a manufacturing industry, sustaining quality is a major concern in the cement sector. We have heavily invested on international standards for quality equipment as well as in-house test facilities to protect the brand value of Shah Cement. Since the beginning we have adopted the latest technology in our production and quality control system. Added care along with the technology lead to the discovery and correction of “bugs” in the production system. Investing in training means investing in quality. Whenever we invest in training, our employees work more knowledgeably and efficiently since they understand their job and can find ways to improve. Having said that, we always considered that training begins with people in leadership positions.

Tell us about the World’s Largest VRM technology and what makes it revolutionary?
The futuristic cement plants will be digital-heavy to ensure sustainability and to achieve competitive advantages over other market players. Embracing digitalization and innovation is and will be the key driving factor of the 21st century. Globally leading cement producers have already embarked on the path to digitalization and are thriving.

Worlds’ biggest building materials companies deployed a digital solution to derive decisions from big data in their facilities spanning worldwide. This digitized solution deployment was not only about the production system, but also covered day-to-day operations like finances as well. This kind of data-driven decision making definitely benefits the rock-solid base for automation and optimizes the production potential. It also massively helps the manufacturers to reduce waste in terms of money and manpower, which makes them more sustainable and eco-friendly.

Shah Cement is the leading cement brand of Bangladesh and we are bringing breakthrough technology in our cement production operations through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered Vertical Roller Mill (VRM.). Shah Cement has set the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest vertical roller cement mill in 2019. The OK81-6™ vertical mill, set up in Shah Cement plant, was manufactured by FLSmidth of Denmark.

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The World’s Largest VRM has incorporated the latest advancements in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The Intelligent Monitoring Control System evaluates every stage of the production process from a central computer panel. If any operation on the machine encounters a problem, the Artificial Intelligence will be able to identify the problem and solve it with its built-in tools. This superior technology largely eliminates the chance of a human error. This groundbreaking technology ensures consistent and uninterrupted production of high-quality cement and that makes VRM a revolutionary machine.

The Guinness World Record holding VRM machine has certainly upped the stakes in the industry – before we discuss the technology further, can you talk about Shah Cement’s technology partner FLSmidth?
For over three decades vertical roller mill technology has been recognized across the world for the production of superior quality cement and for its efficient energy management. FLSmidth of Denmark is one of the leading technology providers for Cement Vertical Roller Mill with a long and proven track record. FLSmidth designed a new cement vertical roller mill capable of large-scale cement production with a state-of-the-art quality management system. They incorporated the most advanced AI and digital technology in their design and were looking for a suitable partner to implement the design. Shah Cement decided to partner with FLSmidth to commission the world’s most advanced and the largest vertical mill in cement manufacturing.

The VRM machine can produce many varieties of cement at once. Can you talk us through the options and what makes Shah Cement’s cement the sustainable choice?
The industry is currently facing increasing demands for diverse compositions of high-quality cement to cater to different mega projects. Another important aspect of the new Shah Cement facility is the addition of a multi-compartment silo. This will give us the flexibility to ensure steady supply of customized cement formulations to the exact requirement of mega projects without disrupting normal production. The newly introduced ‘multi-compartment silo’, together with the largest VRM in the world, will be able to produce cement of different compositions according to the different requirements in a much more efficient way. We are proud to introduce the world’s most advanced cement technology to the Bangladesh cement market.

The record-winning VRM at Shah Cement is equipped with state-of-the-art AI-systems that are guided by data-driven algorithms. With the integrated Intelligence Monitoring System and Intelligent Knowledge Solution, the cement production at Shah Cement is not only automated, but also has reduced waste, increased production and improved product quality.

Tell us about the function of the AI system that is guided by data-driven algorithms. AI is essentially supposed to improve operations – are we potentially glimpsing a future of the cement industry where the entire process can be machine driven and not require human intervention?
These new AI technologies are based on machine and deep-learning algorithms that create their own understanding of a process by finding patterns in the raw process data. They then use this understanding to solve problems that help improve performance and sustainability
As one practical example of AI at work, the facility’s predictive modeling process data signals that are either unreliable or unavailable – such as real-time clinker quality measurements, these are then used to create a more accurate model and controller of the actual process conditions.
The benefits of AI controlled operations is an improved ability to maintain optimal set points and faster response to conditions that may result in undesirable situations. AI is opening the door to create new solutions that efficiently offer more value, to further improve the intelligence of our process control solutions, which is a big part of our commitment to make Shah Cement plant smarter, more productive and increasingly sustainable.

How do Intelligence Monitoring System and Intelligent Knowledge Solution help to reduce waste?
The world’s largest Vertical Roller miller is also equipped with a built-in knowledge solution system. Built-in tools in the Intelligent Knowledge Solution keep the VRM updated with the latest best available data through the FLSmidth cloud networks and resource system. It’s guided digitally, by a system coupled with analytics-driven maintenance and process-knowledge experts to follow the best course of operation and troubleshooting. Any problems faced by the machine can be resolved with no manual intervention which ensures a high run factor.
 
Japan's Softbank is buying a 20% stake in bKash
Tribune desk
  • Published 12:52 pm November 11, 2021
Development



The Board of Directors of BRAC Bank Limited has given this information
Softbank, a Japanese multinational company, is going to buy 20% stake in Bikash, Bangladesh's leading mobile financial services provider (MFS). Recently, an agreement has been signed between the two parties in this regard.

This was stated by the Board of Directors of BRAC Bank Limited after the approval of the share purchase and subscription agreement.

Softbank will acquire its stake (on a fully mixed basis) under SVF-2 (Softbank Vision Fund-2) Beam (DE) LLC, according to price-sensitive data released by BRAC Bank on Wednesday (November 11). The acquisition of Softbank will not change the shareholding of BRAC Bank in the development. In other words, even after the end of the transaction, the majority of voting for BRAC Bank Development will remain as a shareholder.

The statement further said that the agreement was signed subject to the relevant regulatory formalities.

According to equity research analysts, the additional investment and expertise that the new partnership will bring will help the organization develop its products and industry.
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More on bKash as a company, which can be called Bangladesh version of Paypal + Western Union (in a way).

 
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Above is a piling picture in the Padma Bridge construction provided by @Bilal9. The pile diameter is 3.0 meter.

He has stated in another post that the Chinese company has used many international codes in the structural design analysis. I am happy that our idiot BD authorities have not interfered in that by saying, "This is the country of Bangabondhu and only BD codes should be used, Joy Bangla".

I belive instead of introducing some Peasant Codes, all important structure designs must follow interanationally accepted American or British codes and standards.

- This is the first time I have encountered such a large dia pile. In Japan I have seen a maximum of 1.3/ 1.5 meter dia piles under the buildings. Bridges here must have 3m large dia piles, no doubt.

A few tidbits about the Padma pilings:

1) The minimum C to C distance between any two piles has to be equal to or more than 1.5 times x pile dia. In the case of Padma, the minimum becomes 4.5m, which I can see has been followed.
2) A large dia pile requires double or multiple vertical rods. Padma has two bars bundled together, dia perhaps 40 mm, not sure.
3) Spacing of horizontal tie bars is perfect somewhere within 10cm. Perfect. The dia being 20mm. Strength of tie bars is very important to resist a structral failure. When a heavy load tries to bend the vertical main bars diagonally, the tie bars resist it. This is how the main bars and the concrete do not yield to external loadings.

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The thickness of the pile cap is decided by the force of the Punching Shear it is subjected to during heavy wind or earthquake. These loads are in addition to the Dead Loads.

I think hit strength from moving water vehicles is not that much. It certainly cannot tilt the pier even by a fraction of a cm.

However, the piers must be protected by hammering additional H-piles around the piers.
 
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Bangladesh ICT Minister Palak describing "tauwering acheeew-men of e-gobar-nansh in last tuuwel yearsh" in Bangladesh ...

Thankfully its a short enough video. Ignore the sycophantic comments directed to his boss and also her son/dad.

 
This vision for the future Health Complex One and the Grameen Caledonian College of Nursing represents a contemporary paradigm shift in healthcare master planning. Careful consideration of integrated infrastructure planning, optimized 3D multi-use stratification and providing a site wide community park will make Health Complex One an innovative healthcare model creating a modern healthcare campus which takes advantage of local climate and context to create a unique, Hospital in a park and a park in a Hospital. This Health complex is based in the North Dhaka suburb of Uttara and is part of a much larger complex of super specialized hospitals and healthcare triage facilities.

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Well, that canal-side type construction and its associated non-chaotic construction for the higher income group should have been replicated for the lower income group. You may have seen my objections to high rises and skyscrapers. :) You live in USA and you will have seen the niceness of the suburbs-type housing layout. Do you not wish for such areas to be in Bangladesh for all income groups ? :)



Nice !
Bangladesh has the highest population density on earth its not physically possible to do build american style suburbs the market doesn't support it.
 
Growing during Pandemic
5 minutes read


The food delivery service Foodpanda witnessed phenomenal growth during the COVID-19 pandemic while keeping restaurants running by providing them with the needed delivery service and the foodies serving delights from their favourite food joint. foodpanda Bangladesh Co-founder and Managing Director Ambareen Reza speak to Colors Arka Dev Biswas on how the business has remained afloat when all businesses have been struggling.

For Ambareen, society comes first
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck last year no one had any idea on what to do or how long this would last. More than one and a half years into the epidemic everyone is learning to live with it: Companies are going back to their drawing board to revisit and recalibrate business plans. Despite the COVID-induced new normal situation and even in lockdowns, Foodpanda has been able to retain its growth and witnessed its service demands kept on growing.

Lockdowns have forced people to move to digital space for banking to all other essential services. Pandemic has created the situation for App-based marketing solutions to leapfrog to newer heights.

So how did Foodpanda manage to operate and grow its business during the pandemic? Foodpanda Bangladesh Co-founder and Managing Director Ambareen Reza said, ‘Since the beginning of the pandemic, all of us at foodpanda have learnt to be more agile’. Despite the uncertainties around, they prepared to adjust to the new normal. Talking about the positive mindset at the helm of affairs, she said, ‘Our primary goal has been to support our community of customers, riders, and restaurant partners. We have taken several initiatives to extend our support to our network during these trying times. Additionally, we chose to focus on expansion in an effort to make our services accessible to both customers and entrepreneurs across the country, while giving riders a platform to work’.

In 2013, she started Foodpanda Bangladesh with a handful of team members and has been working to create an ecosystem that mutually benefits their customers, riders, and vendor partners. Reflecting on the ecosystem, she said that they had onboarded thousands of home chefs, most of whom were women, and given them a platform through which they can sell their home-cooked meals, snacks, and treats. They have helped around 20,000 restaurant partners to establish a digital presence. This network support allowed them to generate revenue from the digital channels despite a global pandemic.

Having a strong digital presence has helped restaurants and shops to engage and communicate with their consumer base better. Along with expanding, they have introduced new verticals and services such as pandamart shops, pick-up, and home chef program, foodpanda for business, and pandago which is a new logistics-as-a-service solution. All of these have created opportunities for small businesses across the country to build their digital presence and have enabled these businesses to tap into the digital ecosystem.

With travel restrictions in place, the question becomes as to how a business survives which depended on travelling between points to ensure they can cater their services. Responding to this she said, “We have worked closely with the government to ensure that food and grocery delivery services are considered as emergency services – in line with the norm like in other countries. As a result of our coordinated efforts, food and grocery delivery have been exempted from the purview of the recent lockdown and restrictions.

We have stood beside our restaurant partners to ensure that they can keep their kitchens open for delivery and takeaway, while also making sure that our riders can keep working and earning”. That certain essential services are imperative to keep people, economy, and businesses afloat is what kept Foodpanda thriving.

With their countrywide network, they are making it possible for people to stay home while remaining on the frontline, delivering essentials to their doorsteps. They are also diligently working to ensure that their riders, pandamart staff, and restaurant partners abide by health safety precautions to keep the community at large as safe as possible.

Members of Foodpanda are a family to Ambareen Reza

A risk-free workplace is a must-have for every company and in this time of the pandemic, it becomes pivotal to maintain safety before anything else. Foodpanda takes every necessary precaution to protect its employees and customers.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, she said, ‘Over the last few months, we have taken several initiatives to keep our riders safe. Some of these initiatives include ensuring insurance for them, providing on the job riders with care packages, and equipping our frontline forces with masks, sanitiser, and other supplies. We have ensured that the staff in our pandamart dark stores practice proper hygiene and ensure sourcing and handling of products is done with safety and hygiene in mind. We have ensured temperature checks of all staff and riders when they begin their shift, and we have worked to make contactless delivery and digital payment a reality.’

As they move ahead, their main concern became that they would have to keep continuing to expand and help entrepreneurs digitally transform their businesses. She explained that along with helping entrepreneurs to digitally transform their businesses they need to keep focusing on operational excellence so that the customers and partners always enjoy superior service and quick help from the platform.

Foodpanda’s latest development has seen them venture into the world of quick commerce through the introduction of Foodpanda shops and their pandamart dark stores. These stores are offering delivery of groceries and other essentials within 30 minutes. In less than a year, they have been able to expand their pandamart dark stores in 25 locations across the capital and other major cities. They have also introduced 24/7 grocery delivery services through pandamart which is a first in the country.

They have launched Foodpanda for business recently aiming to cater to the meal demand of corporations. This is a one-click solution with a transparent and streamlined billing process.

They have also launched a pick-up service within the Foodpanda app and website with the aim to add greater convenience for their customers and restaurant partners alike. They have also introduced pandago recently, which is a logistics-as-a-service solution. Essentially, pandago provides businesses, merchants, and vendors with quick and reliable package delivery services.

When asked about her plan for the future of Foodpanda she said, ‘As we grow and expand to new areas, we continue to prioritize community empowerment. We will continue to expand to new areas to serve even more customers and to give smaller merchants a platform via which they can go digital and increase their revenue and presence. We will also continue to support riders by giving them a platform to generate income through flexible working practices.

We plan to create more job opportunities in the technology sector. As we grow, we envision expanding the reach of our pandamart dark stores and strengthening our e-commerce operation so that everyone can experience and begin to expect speedy and convenient delivery.’

Talking about empowerment she proudly said, ‘We have recently trained and onboarded riders from the transgender community. Moving forward, we hope to welcome even more transgender individuals to the Foodpanda family.’

Ambareen Reza expressed her commitment and concluded the interview by saying, ‘Foodpanda we will continue to contribute to the community and economy in a positive way.’
 
Leading From the Front
6 minutes read


Syed Almas Kabir, President of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS), shared his views with COLORS Business’ Asad Uz Zaman and Lamyaa Yushra on the challenges of Digital transformation in Bangladesh.
Syed Almas Kabir, President of BASIS on the cover of COLORS Business’ October 2021 issue. Photographer: Kazi Mukul.

As the country went into lockdown in March last year and working from home became the new normal, one sector saw opportunities. Bangladesh’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has found and utilized the pandemic as a blessing in disguise. The government of Bangladesh has declared it as a thrust sector as it represents potential for successful reforms, job creation, industry growth, and high spill-over effects to other sectors as well as for improving governance and facilitating inclusion.

Syed Almas Kabir, BASIS President and Director of Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), is an entrepreneur, ICT industry evangelist, policy advocate, and an angel investor. He went to study Electrical Engineering at Jadavpur University, India, in 1985 and afterward obtained his Master’s degree from New York University, USA. Almas came to Dhaka and started his career as a programmer in 1989 and also became a systems analyst for one and a half years before pursuing his Master’s degree. He worked for a very renowned computer company, Tandy-Radio Shack.

“I chose IT because when I passed my HSC back in 1984, I started learning computer programming. It took my interest, especially in the logic and the algorithms which are required in programming and I was very good at it,” he said. “So, I loved it and I think that encouraged me to choose electrical engineering and then later computers.”

Returning to Bangladesh, Syed Almas Kabir joined Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) as a senior lecturer where he became the Associate Professor as well as the Registrar and was involved with various administrative roles and worked there for 13 years. “In 2006 I left academia, and I eventually came to the industry.”

He did not come from a family of business background as both his parents were jobholders, and he thinks it helped him to gain an academic perspective considering his mother was a teacher whereas his father worked for a British tea company.

Almas Kabir is a shareholder and Chief Executive Officer of MetroNet Bangladesh Limited, the largest nationwide data-communication company in the country offering Cloud Computing, FinTech, Cyber Security, Intranet, Internet, IP Telephony, software & system integration, and other IT Enabled Services.

Being a first-hand witness to the rapid growth of this sector, he observed: “When this government first came to power in 1996, they made the computers and accessories duty-free which helped a tremendous growth and popularity of computerization everywhere. So, that was the start. Later, on December 12, 2008, the Awami League declared their election manifesto with the theme and vision of ‘Digital Bangladesh’. That gave this industry a very big push. It is definitely a gamechanger and if you notice, in the last 12 years, I’d say there has been a paradigm shift.”

The concept of ‘Digital Bangladesh’ has more to it than its literal meaning. “We sometimes do not understand what ‘Digital Bangladesh’ really means. What it really is: it will be a country where the citizens will enjoy the services very easily and transparently and more importantly a citizen does not have to go to the government for services, but the government will bring the services to the citizen’s hand wherever that citizen is. Wherever I am, I need not have to go to the government office in the district headquarters.

Even if I am in the suburbs, I can access that service and get that service through my computer or through my mobile phone. So, this is what I understand as the main idea about ‘Digital Bangladesh’. The spirit of ‘Digital Bangladesh’ is to ensure democratic rights of a citizen, ensuring transparency, of course, making everything more efficient and less time-consuming.”

For Syed Almas Kabir, the passion for IT came at an early age

He added, “We have come a long way and the government has identified about more than 2500 citizen services which will be eventually transformed into online services. Some 400-500 services have already been made available online, but then there are some more that have to be online. The work is going on and we are on the right path.”

With the current situation, implementation of newer methods is in full swing with the government planning to increase export of local products aiming to turn Bangladesh into a manufacturing hub. But challenges lie ahead. Syed Almas Kabir cautioned that the young demography will not be so young by the time Bangladesh attains the status of a developed country by 2041 and how it is crucial for Bangladesh to properly utilize this window of time.

“The average age of our population is below 28. But the problem is this advantage will not be there after, say 20 years. By 2041 when we dream of becoming a developed nation and a knowledge-based society, by that time this average age of the population will be over 40. So, we can only draw the demographic dividend in the next 20 years or so.”

He pointed out that there is the problem of an unskilled workforce which creates a gap in the industry. “There is a difference between knowledge and skill and it is very important to merge these two; this is what I have been advocating for a long time. I understand the problems of academia and I understand the requirements of the industry. A gap is still there and we really need to minimize that. Collaboration between academia and the industry is very much necessary,” he detailed.

He proposed incorporating hands-on training into the four-year syllabus, so when the students graduate, they will have both knowledge and skills. “We have been talking to the University Grants Commission (UGC) and different universities. Some of the private universities have listened to us. They have included industry representatives in their academic advisory boards. But the public universities are difficult because they have to go through many bureaucratic channels and I think UGC has to step up and has to look into this matter.”

However, he observed, during the ongoing pandemic, digital commerce has taken a leap of five years with people becoming more familiar with buying online. “Digital commerce has become very popular in the last one year or so; what we would have achieved in the next five years has been achieved within a year. Now, we really need to keep this momentum going and if we take some correct steps, I think the digital commerce industry will grow even more.”

So, what are the things that need to be done now keeping the challenges in mind?

Syed Almas Kabir mentioned that the government is working on taking broadband internet to rural areas. “We have mobile internet connectivity everywhere in Bangladesh but that cannot contribute to the economy unless it is broadband. So, broadband internet has to be taken to the rural areas, to the end-users and we must ensure the speed, availability, and quality of the internet. If that happens, the people in the rural areas can start their own enterprises and join the economy by doing freelancing works, outsourcing, digital commerce, and so on. And they can start contributing to the economy and citizens can take advantage of the digital services.

Also, skill development is very important for our workforce. It doesn’t necessarily have to be ICT skills. I would say: Do not be a Jack of all trade; you have to be a master of one particular trade. When we are entering into the fourth industrial revolution these skills are even more required. Many people will lose jobs and new jobs will be introduced. Those who will lose their jobs would need to be skilled or reskilled in different areas. Therefore, skill development should be the top priority in Bangladesh.”

The world has realized the importance of the ICT sector when the most basics of all things were done digitally, like banking, meetings, classes, business, and even judiciary. More solutions and tools will be needed and that will open up big opportunities for the ICT sector. “There will be new technologies that will be used to make businesses more productive. I think in Bangladesh, we really need to be very cautious and vigilant and grab this opportunity at once. Thus, we can not only serve the people of our country but also offer our services internationally.”
 
Brothers @Dungeness and @Shotgunner51 maybe you will find this of some interest if you like hard economic data,

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Bangladesh: A New Frontier of Investment
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Considered as the next Asian Tiger, Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. The growth rate of the economy averaging above 6.5% over a decade has transformed the country into a destination of investment opportunities. To showcase the true potential of Bangladesh as an attractive place for foreign investment roadshow “The Rise of Bengal Tiger: Potential of Trade and Investment in Bangladesh” was organized by the Bangladesh Security Exchange Commission (BSEC) between July 26 and August 2 this year. The Contributing Editor of COLORS Business Magazine Rehnuma Karim Ph.D. reports from New York.

The delegate representing Bangladesh at the Roadshow took a group photograph

The invited keynote speaker at the recently held BSEC Road Show in New York, Lawrence H. Summers, the 71st Secretary of Treasury for President Clinton and the Director of the National Economic Council for President Obama appropriately, pointed out that the potential of Bangladesh as a place for growing investment is still undermined and untapped in the USA. The data on the state of the US and Bangladesh trade indicated that US Trade volume in 2019 with Bangladesh was only $9 billion while for Vietnam it was 81.3 billion, India $146.1 Billion, Malaysia $59.2 billion, and Singapore $91.6 billion. And this is why events such as the Road Show titled: “Rise of the Bengal Tiger-Potential for Trade and Investment” definitely can address the misconception and gaps letting the world have a glimpse of what Bangladesh has to offer as the new frontier of investment.

The first roadshow was held successfully in Dubai, UAE from February 9 to 12, 2021 creating overwhelming responses both from the NRBs and foreign institutional and individual investors. The second series of events followed and also was organized by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission that took place in 4 major cities of the USA, starting from New York City followed by Washington D.C, Los Angeles, and concluded in Silicon Valley, Santa Clara. Two different sessions were arranged for NRBs and Foreign Investors in New York City. In New York, both Investors and business leaders of both nonresident Bangladeshi and foreign institutional and individual investors participated.

A senior and high-powered team of BSEC led by its Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam and representatives from the concerned ministries and regulatory authorities, dignitaries including the Private Industry and Investment Adviser to Prime Minister Salman F Rahman; Senior Secretary of Finance Division participated at the different sessions of the Roadshow across the USA. Abdur Rouf Talukder; Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce; Tapan Kanti Ghosh, Secretary of Economic; Resources Division-Ms. Fatima Yasmin; Executive Chairman of BIDA, Md. Sirazul Islam and Executive Chairman of BEPZA Major General Md. Nazrul Islam are also among the core group of speakers. The events were also attended by many private sector leaders, NRBs, foreign Investors, and Media.

The first of its kind Roadshow focused on Investment and Trade with two major sessions directed to the NRBs and the Foreign Investors took place at the Intercontinental New York Barclay hotel in Manhattan, New York on July 26, 2021.


NRB Q&A sessions

Attracting FDI
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) plays a significant role in contributing to the economic growth of a country like Bangladesh, giving the needed push to the next stage of development. Bangladesh has set its goal to become an upper-middle-income country by 2030. But to achieve this status, it has to keep the continued momentum to build the desired conducive investment conditions to attract foreign investors and NRBs who can stimulate the national economy. According to the Global Investment Competitiveness report, 12 pillars including institution, infrastructure, ICT adoption, macroeconomic stability, health, skills, product market, labor market, financial system, market size, dynamism in business, and innovation capability are needed to create an attractive investment environment. According to the World Economic Forum, Bangladesh scored 52.12 points out of 100 on the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report and has room for growth to climb up the ranking.


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In the fiscal year 2018-2019, despite the not-so-high ranking; Bangladesh’s GDP grew by 8.2%, which was ranked among the highest in the Asia Pacific region. Confidence of investors is also growing mainly because of the proven policies, regulatory reform, infrastructural and ICT development, and for the decade of stable political conditions. FDIs have been flowing mostly into RMG sectors, food processing, and Banking, but more sectors can be explored such as health and tourism.

The following chart shows the forecasted economic indicators for Bangladesh, which surely is a positive sign for growth. Foreign investors are attracted to invest in a host country when the country’s general state shows the following indicators with a promising outlook. The indicators are; legal, economic, and political stability; increased employment and economic growth, development of backward areas; increase in exports; exchange rate stability; growth in the energy/power sectors; stimulation of economic development; development of human capital; improved responsiveness to the needs of investors and improved capital flow. The roadshow aimed to convey the updated information on some of these major indicators and undertook a coordinated effort between the government and the private sectors not only to promote Bangladesh but also to identify investors’ priorities for investing in Bangladesh.


The above Economic Indicators for Bangladesh include actual values, historical data charts, an economic calendar, time-series statistics, business news, long-term forecasts, and short-term predictions for the Bangladesh economy. Source World Economic Forum 2019

MNCs bringing Foreign Direct Investment are more interested to invest in developing countries when they fully understand their opportunities and risks. The real images of Bangladesh’s success stories showing prospects for more and new types of investments have to be told to grab the attention of the right investors who are ready to explore and grow with the country. With a 6% and above annual growth in the GDP and per capita national income reaching US$ 2,227, the country is primed towards achieving the middle-income country status by 2024 and aiming to become a developed country by 2041. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the country showed resilience even during the pandemic that placed Bangladesh among the 23rd IMF member countries that were forecasted to have positive growth despite COVID-19. To promote promising opportunities for investors around the world as an emerging key hub for trade and investment, BSEC partnering with BIDA took this initiative to put the spotlight on what Bangladesh has to offer.

Bangladesh as an enticing destination for FDI
The World Bank conducted an investor survey on 750 Multinational companies to understand the factors that attract them towards investing in a developing country. The following illustration showed that political stability and security along with a stable legal and regulatory environment are the leading characteristics considered by executives of MNCs to invest and these far outweighed issues such as low tax and labor cost.
Eminent Economist Lawrence H. Summers, Professor of Charles W. Eliot University and former Chief Economist of the World Bank in his keynote speech appreciated the current transparent framework of the Bangladesh financial market and encouraged investors to explore the possibilities of investing in Bangladesh.

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During the last 12 years since 2009-Bangladesh continued to show a stable political environment. Salman F Rahman mentioned how the term “Hartal” is not known to the new generation of foreign investors nowadays which surely is a positive sign. The government is also taking conscious approaches and making plans to address a transparent and stable legal and regulatory environment for an investment-friendly environment. Digitization of many such services therefore no doubt has been a key contributing factor of growth. With the accelerated effort of digitalization in Bangladesh and infrastructure development, remarkable progress has been made in the ICT sector that increased confidence to invest in Bangladesh by foreign investors and venture capitalists. Leading Financial Institutions of the world also said the following, observing Bangladesh’s remarkable growth.
  • Fastest growing economy in South Asia” The World Bank
  • “One of the top four fastest-growing digital economies of the world”. Global Connectivity Index
  • “The 23rd largest economy of the world” PriceWaterhouseCoopers

In the path towards becoming a developed country by 2041, Bangladesh despite the pandemic performed as one of the best markets in the world in 2020. $40 billion has been invested in infrastructure to support growth. One of the strengths Bangladesh has to offer is the demographic dividend of 55 million youth population and 70 million workforces. At the inauguration event in New York, the prominent speakers from the core delegation delivered their pitch presenting Bangladesh’s strength and also addressed the misconceptions.

The takeaways
Each speaker represented their respective organizations at the BSEC roadshow and elaborately showcased the reasons for Bangladesh being in the trajectory to achieve a high growth rate and emphasized the investment potential and opportunities, available facilities, products, and services for both NRBs and foreign investors. They made the case on why FDIs jointly or 100% fully foreign-owned can enjoy global standards benefits through their investments in Bangladesh. The following section captures some of the major key takeaways.




The High-level Delegates Answering Questions at the Panel DiscussionSalman F. Rahman addressing the audience at the US Roadshow in New York


Investment Opportunities in the Capital Market
Professor Rubaiyat-Ul-Islam, Chairman of BSEC, eloquently placed the facts and figures on why Bangladesh has become a fertile ground for trade and investment. He mentioned the benefits investors can enjoy having no tax on profit till 2021 and 20% to 100% tax reduction for 10 years of operation in High tech parks. Also, there is an 80% VAT exemption on utility investing in High tech parks. No foreign equity limitation on share-holding and 50% discount on foreign employees for 3 years. The investors can also enjoy 100% repatriation facilities for profit and capital, 10% cashback on export-oriented revenue, and duty-free import provision of fixed capital and assets. Bonded warehouse facilities are also provided in a few sectors.

He also said that Bangladesh has a robust capital market that guarantees a high return on capital.

DSE showed double-digit growth of 24.4 % amidst the pandemic, growth in remittance flow and a surplus current account that indicates the sign of resiliency. In Santa Clara, Professor Rubaiyat-Ul-Islam talked about the vibrant growing Startup ecosystem that is supported by Bangladesh Government and the private sector. The accelerated digitization in Bangladesh allowed the ICT sector to grow manifold which is also an excellent indicator of growth. ICT export has crossed the billion dollars. The median age of youth in Bangladesh is 27 who have increased digital awareness and tech adaptability. Every 3 out of 5 people have an MFS account. The number of mobile subscribers in 2021 is at 170 million and internet users at 112 million, which has become a potential market with a growing appetite for consumer spending. Global standard policies have been activated to promote the ICT sector and the startups’ industry. Customized training on frontier technology has become mandatory from primary education which will build a highly-skilled workforce. There is also a 100% tax discount for 10 years for investors who want to invest in high-tech parks in Bangladesh.



Another significant indicator to attract foreign investors is the consistent GDP growth that has surpassed the GDP growth of Bangladesh’s neighboring countries. He also informed the NRBs on the NITA (Non-Resident Investors Taka Account) which is a facility that is provided to non-resident individuals/institutions including non-resident Bangladeshi nationals who are interested in trading Bangladeshi securities against foreign exchange remitted from abroad. The Chairman of BSEC concluded his talk quoting Rabindranath Tagore, “Everything comes to us and belongs to us if we create that capacity to receive it.” He invited potential investors to the untapped opportunities that Bangladesh has to offer to build a strong partnership. At the Stakeholders meeting in Washington D.C, he pointed out the importance of networking that can build bridges and added that “Bangladesh is no longer looking for aid but looking for partners. We have planned infrastructure development, successful educated business people who can be excellent business partners for you. And the population of Bangladesh is a blessing as it has created a large market size near France, Italy, and England. With the growing purchasing power of our people, Bangladesh is launching into a big market which presents attractive characteristics for investors to come in.”




Representatives from Private Businesses in New YorkBSEC Chairman making his introductory Remark

Steps to attract FDI
The Executive Chairman of BEPZA, Major General Md. Nazrul Islam, SPP appreciated the long-term trade and investment partnership between Bangladesh and the USA. His speech was aimed to build awareness of the reformation that has been going on to accommodate the investors from abroad. BEPZA, the government body empowered and responsible for the creation, development, operation, and management of industrial zones like Export Processing Zones as well as promoting investment in Bangladesh has been playing an integral part in the economic growth of the country. He encouraged the investors by mentioning the establishment of the One-Stop Service (OSS) in 2018. The One-Stop Service (OSS) Center tag line is “With you all through the way” and was created to facilitate existing companies and prospective investors of EPZs to receive services, incentives, permission, NOCs, & Certificates from BEPZA or other service-providing organizations within the stipulated time from a single window. He added how EPZ contributed 1/5 of the total export and encouraged product diversity and a move from the single-sector dependence that was focused on RMG. At present EPZs have expanded production into 22 products under export categories. Reduce single sector dependence.

Stable Investment Climate
To advocate his case on bringing in sizable Foreign Direct Investment, Bangladesh Commerce Secretary, Tapan Kanti Ghosh described the role of export and import in Bangladesh’s growth journey. He was optimistic about Bangladesh climbing the ladders of development with rapid progress and stability in different sectors, maintaining a steady inflation rate of 5%. Ghosh did realistically acknowledge a few drawbacks such as Bangladesh scoring 52 out of 100 in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Index. He also said that due to the pandemic, negative growth did happen in trade but also showed improvement as it is slowly taking off from the beginning of this year. One of the challenges mentioned by him in the talk was about transforming many industries into export-oriented industries. On the US-Bangladesh trade issue, Bangladesh is not yet activating to its potential as it was reflected in the data he showed under the State of US trade in which US trade volume with Bangladesh was only $9 billion. This is where he sees room for improvement and injecting foreign investment could expedite and facilitate the sector. He suggested that Free Trade Agreements and preferential market agreements can ensure the rise of exports from Bangladesh to the USA. Gosh also spoke about how automation of company registration under the commerce ministry is making things easier for foreign investors to take the first step on entering Bangladesh. He concluded his speech mentioning the Commerce ministry taking action to prepare a high-powered committee that is already planning on the reforms that will be paving the way to the long-term vision of Bangladesh becoming the 23rd largest economy by 2050.

Arif Khan highlighted major strides in socio-economic indicators during his presentation


Former Secretary of Treasury Lawrence Summers addressing the US Roadshow audience

Winds of Change
Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman, Commissioner for BSEC, addressed some misconceptions about investing in Bangladesh and emphasized how Bangladesh is becoming the fastest growing economy in the world that can accommodate a dynamic environment for investment. According to him, the accelerated GDP growth, low Debt servicing ratio, political stability, and protection of long-term interest of investors are attractive attributes reflecting Bangladesh’s potential as a host nation for foreign investment. He also highlighted the importance of a well-functioning derivatives market that is essential for the growth of our capital market to attract foreign investors to the Bangladesh Stock market. He also mentioned that Bangladesh is taking steps to reduce the existing high transaction costs to protect the interest of the investors.

Attracting NRB investments
Md. Sirazul Islam Executive Chairman for Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), invited the NRBs to can take advantage of what transformative Bangladesh has to offer. He praised the NRBs as Bangladesh’s irreplaceable assets and requested NRBs to take part in the process to accelerate Bangladesh’s growth. He assured the investors and the NRBs of how different Bangladesh is now as BIDA is playing an important role in providing investors without hassles through a one-stop service (OSS) via online platforms. He presented an actual story of NRB investors registering his company from New York using BIDA’s One-Stop Service. Investors interested in High Tech Park also have their own OSS. BIDA has been leading the effort of different services through the portal. Private sectors are also integrating their services into the BIDA portal due to the ease of doing business. The Executive Chairman was disappointed to see that many transformative aspects of Bangladesh that are helping the country to do better than the competitions are unfortunately not included in the world bank indicators. He also referred to the tremendous improvement and development that has been happening in infrastructure, building deep seaports, airports, bridges, 100 special economic zones, 39 high tech parks, and special eco-tourism parks under the Bangladesh Export processing zone authority. He added how BIDA is playing an important role as a consultant to businesses. He also welcomed investors to bring in investment for the untapped market that has a growing demand for medical devices and health products.

Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam handing over gifts to Lawrence Summers

Shyamal Dutta, the editor of Bhorer Kagoj, asked questions to the panel

Sound Policies for better stability
Senior Secretary for the Ministry of Finance in Bangladesh, Abdur Rouf Talukder highlighted the last 12 years in which one of the most important achievements happened in Bangladesh, maintaining macroeconomic stability, which is conducive for investment and economic growth. He pointed out how the stability resulted in the downward trend of inflation, interest rate, and exchange rate and the banks offering 7% for term loans. This according to him is taking Bangladesh to reach the state of fiscal sustainability with low debt to GDP ratio which was around 35% and much lower than the neighboring countries. This is no doubt evidence of sound fiscal policies being implemented.
The budget deficit was also managed. He also stated that Bangladesh is also in a position in which the country can afford to give loans to Sri Lanka, Namibia, and Sudan. In 40 years, he was proud to say that from 2009 to 2021 our per capita income has increased on an average at $128, and during the pandemic—Bangladesh Government has been providing low-cost credit lines and cash incentives to both domestic and foreign investors to support their businesses.

Economic Resilience
Salman F Rahman, the Private Industry and Investment Adviser to the Prime Minister energized the attendees saying, “Real change is taking place in Bangladesh”. He initiated his speech giving a positive outlook of the country confirming that the criticism of a trickle-down economic effect not happening is not an accurate statement and invited everyone to see the flavors of a new Bangladesh. He explained how he saw the changes happening at the union level with rural people actually participating in the economic activities such as starting a beauty parlor, opening Chinese restaurants and Gymnasiums, and even having pet shops. All these he identified are the result of high purchasing power among the general population who are demanding a better life.

During the pandemic, the government also provided direct monetary support to those who needed help. He was excited to share that the country is moving forward in a planned manner, setting priorities and goals. He also emphasized the need for foreign direct investment in the areas of medical services and products and the tourism industry. One of the key achievements of this government according to Rahman was achieving political stability which is a crucial precursor of economic growth and attracting Foreign Investors. The second big success pointed out by him was providing uninterrupted power, which was not the case a decade ago. Now Bangladesh enjoys surplus energy and 99% of the households in Bangladesh are connected to electricity.





NRBs and Private Foreign Investors at the Road Show

One of the biggest challenges after power source and political stability was Bangladesh being the 8th largest populated country in the world and the most densely populated country in the world. That is why industries across Bangladesh grew in an unplanned manner based on access to roads and highways. But he found the Industry owners complaining about inadequate resources and facilities that hampered their growth, which mainly happened as the industries were placed before proper infrastructures were placed. Therefore, the EPZs were created to serve the investors, giving them access to all resources and benefits.

He addressed another criticism regarding corruption and threw an open challenge that corruption does not exist at the highest level as things are happening at a transparent level but did not deny the presence of corruption at the lower and middle levels. He stated positively that these too can be curbed through the transformational digital services of all government services that will minimize people-to-people interaction. He said that the accessibility to 4G technology and building of the fiber optic backbone is empowering every corner of Bangladesh whereas a person living in the rural part of Bangladesh is earning through international contracts. He offered foreign Investors and NRBs to take advantage of this new horizon of Investment in Bangladesh where they all could play their part to speed up the growth process to achieve the vision of becoming a developed nation by 2041. It concluded with the assurance to help the investors resolve their concerns and problems through BIDA, BSEC, and BEPZA’s open-door policy where representatives are eager to provide any support.

Return on Investments
Arif Khan, Vice Chairman for Shanta Asset Management took the floor and gave an overall picture of how the existing MNCs and Foreign investors are portraying Bangladesh as an Investment destination. From his previous experiences and communication with the investors, he found that all major investors reported that Bangladesh has the highest Return on Investment and lowest distribution cost in the world. As Bangladesh now has a new mindset with master plans of development, projects that are almost nearing completion such as the Matarbari Power Plant, Dhaka Metro Rail, Padma Multipurpose Bridge, and Karnaphuli Underwater Tunnel will create new opportunities for economic growth across the nation. He proudly announced that Bangladesh never failed to pay any debt on time. He also added how accelerated digitization has created a shift in the lives of 80% of the population and now with access to internet services all across the country, Bangladesh is positioned 8th in freelancing.
Shibli Rubayat gave his presentation on the potentials of trade and investment in Bangladesh


Embracing the Future
The members of the high-powered delegation team members were available to answer all the questions from the attendees at the events who were Foreign Investors, NRBs, business leaders, and media. The panel was very helpful for both the panelists and the participants as many concerning issues were openly discussed and solutions to problems were generated as well. . Many aspects were clarified such as clarification on non-resident Investors Taka Account (NITA) accounts to reduce hassles for NRBs, the opening of digital booths for brokerage houses in different countries, creation of digital outlets with advisory facilities, and starting new products for NRBs.
Bangladesh undoubtedly has come a long way since the country’s independence and has prepared the stage to take off being a nation that has much to offer to the world with determination, proper planning, and setting the right visions at the right time. If the continuum and the spirit to excel prevail, the frontier for future investment and growth will have no limit as Bangladesh opens her doors to a new height of amazing possibilities.
 

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