A roundtable policy dialogue was held on Saturday at the Carnival Hall of the Bangabandhu International Conference Center at the initiative of the General Economics Division of the Bangladesh Planning Commission.
Secretary of Planning Division Pradeep Ranjan Chakraborty acted as the chairperson. Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr Ahmed Kaikaus was present as the chief guest; Chief Coordinator (SDG Affairs) of Prime Minister's Office Zuena Aziz was present as a special guest and Secretary (MAU) of Ministry of Foreign Affairs Rear Admiral (Retd) Md Khurshid Alam, was present as Guest of Honor, reads a press release.
Member (Secretary) of the General Economics Division of Bangladesh Planning Commission Dr Kawser Ahmed presented the keynote of this consultative policy dialogue. Senior officials from different ministries of the government, armed forces, ports authority and research institutions related to the Blue Economy, eminent professors and researchers of different universities, and individuals working in various private and international organizations attended the program.
In the consultative policy dialogue, various activities related to the Blue Economy were covered in 8 major thematic areas (Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture, Marine Energy, Marine Biotechnology and Therapeutics, Marine Tourism, Ship and Port Management, Sea rule and management, Marine Finance and Satellite Oceanography and ICT) which are divided into more than 20 research sectors (for example, Marine Fisheries, Tuna Fisheries, Mariculture, Sea-Weed Cultivation, Pearl Cultivation, Renewable Energy, Non-Renewable Energy, Energy Mix, Ship Transport, Shipbuilding, Ship Recycling, Deep Sea Port, Marine Special Planning, etc).
Stakeholders participating in the dialogue discussed in detail the present role and future prospects of these sectors in the overall economy of Bangladesh. There is a long discussion on what are the obstacles to sustainable growth and development of the Blue Economy and the ways to overcome them. Through these discussions, 20 research topics were identified which will be conducted under the supervision of the Bangladesh Planning Commission.
So far, various activities of the Blue Economy have been conducted fragmentally under different ministries of the Government of Bangladesh. In the dialogue, in-depth explanations and analyzes were given on how the potential of the Blue Economy in Bangladesh can be institutionalized for national progress.
It was decided that the Bangladesh Planning Commission could play an important role in achieving sustainable growth and development by centralizing various activities related to the Blue Economy.