With Bangladesh firmly on the road to building a smart and prosperous Bangladesh, it is imperative that we realize the challenges before us; with the nation set to graduate from a least developed country (LDC) in the next few years and thereby losing many of the incentive afforded to us, we must leave no stone unturned to ensure that our economic growth continue to trend upward and not stagnate.
To that end, foreign direct investment (FDI) remains an avenue with incredible untapped potential. Unfortunately, despite hearing from the authorities concerned that FDI shall indeed be a priority for our nation, it has been disappointing to see that the results have not matched our verbal ambitions.
Indeed, it is alarming to see that net foreign direct investment in Bangladesh declined to $703 million in the October-December period of 2022 compared with that of $1,092 million in the same period of 2021, according to Bangladesh Bank data. Indeed, FDI as a percentage of GDP has seen a worrying stagnation or reduction in recent years - and is not a trend we should be taking lightly at all.
While much of this reduction can be attributed to the current volatility of the global economy at large, there is no doubt that Bangladesh's present day woes - the taka's rapid decrease in value and soaring business costs due to a hike in power and energy prices - have been a significant contributor to discourage potential investors.
If Bangladesh is to indeed fulfil the lofty goals it has set before itself over the next two decades or so, it cannot do so without FDI becoming a core component of its economy. To that end, we urge the authorities concerned to treat the matter with utmost seriousness and ensure that increasing FDI is a core component to any and all future policy discussions.