Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called upon the US investors to make investments in various sectors that included renewable energy, shipbuilding, automobile and pharmaceuticals in Bangladesh.
He said Bangladesh is pleased to offer a special economic zone for them.
“I would like to invite US businessmen to invest in renewable energy, shipbuilding, automobile, pharmaceuticals, heavy machineries, chemical fertilizers, ICT, marine resources, shipbuilding, medical equipment, and Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing in Bangladesh,” she said, reports BSS.
The Prime Minister said these while delivering her address at the high-level Policy Roundtable organised by the US–Bangladesh Business Council at her palace of residence in New York on Thursday.
She also thanked the USA saying, “We deeply appreciate the US government for donating more than 75 million Covid-19 vaccines to Bangladesh through COVAX.”
Sheikh Hasina said that Bangladesh has liberal investment policy, which included foreign investment protection, tax holiday, remittances of royalty; unrestricted exit policy; full repatriation of dividends and capital on exit.
Bangladesh is setting up 100 ‘Special Economic Zones’ (SEZs) and several Hi-tech Parks in different parts of the country, adding that having more than six lakh free-lancing IT professionals, Bangladesh is the right destination for IT investments.
“Moreover, skilled human resources at a competitive wage is an added advantage in Bangladesh. Even if required, we would be happy to offer a dedicated ‘Special Economic Zone’ for the US investors. I believe the US- Bangladesh Business Council can play a significant role in this direction,” she said.
Hasina mentioned that Bangladesh is a pioneer in South Asia for regional connectivity and the strategic location of Bangladesh offers tremendous potential to be the economic hub of the region.
“Having India, China, and Southeast Asia; Bangladesh is in the middle of a combined market of 4 billion people.”
Mentioning that Bangladesh is set to graduate from the LDC status by 2026, therefore, she said they need adequate support to enhance our global competitiveness and export basket.
“I am sure that the United States can be our most robust partner in this challenging endeavour,” she said.
The Premier wished every success to the US-Bangladesh Business Council and sincerely believed that it will significantly enhance the trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.
Mentioning that the United States is a major economic and development partner of Bangladesh, she said, “We have extensive engagements with the United States on a wide range of issues including trade, investment, military-military cooperation, security, climate change, and global health. Our shared goals of mutual prosperity have been echoed through the expanding business-to-business and people-to-people contacts.”
The Premier mentioned that in 2021-22, Bangladesh’s export to the United States was around US$ 10.42 billion and import was around US$ 2.8 billion.
Bd-pratidin English/Golam Rosul
