Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Wednesday said that the government has initiated discussions with the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to enhance Bangladesh’s capacity in trade negotiations.
Shafiqul Alam said this while briefing reporters following a meeting of the National Steering Committee formed to implement and monitor the smooth and sustainable transition strategy of Bangladesh from the LDC status at the chief adviser’s office in Dhaka’s Tejgaon area.
“You know that we are holding free trade agreement (FTA) talks with several countries, including Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and Malaysia. To make these trade negotiations effective, we need to build stronger capacity,” he said.
“We have already talked to the ADB and the World Bank regarding the capacity building and we hope both the institutions will extend their support for this capacity-building initiative,” the press secretary added.
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus chaired the meeting.
The meeting, he said, highlighted the importance of strengthening the information and communication technology (ICT) sector as a major source of job creation.
“You know that many jobs are being created in the ICT sector, but these jobs are not always visible,” the press secretary said, adding, previously, ICT exports received a 6% incentive, but it was discussed that the focus should now shift toward frontier technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).
Cutting the incentive for some old or legacy ICT sector from 6%, he said, the meeting decided to increase the incentive rate beyond 6% for those working in cutting-edge AI and advanced technologies.
Shafiqul Alam said, in the meeting, Chief Adviser Professor Yunus emphasized announcing a roadmap as soon as possible for rapid capacity building and job creation in the ICT sector.
The meeting also discussed the import policy 2026-2028, Shafiqul Alam said, adding that the policy would be drafted and declared soon.
Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin, Industries Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan, Foreign Adviser Md Touhid Hossain, Agriculture Adviser Lt General (Retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Dr Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, Principal Secretary to the Chief Adviser M Siraz Uddin Miah, Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur, NBR Chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan, Special Envoy on International Affairs to the Chief Adviser Lutfey Siddiqi, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser for Posts, Telecommunications and ICT Ministry Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, Principal Coordinator for SDGs Lamiya Morshed, and senior officials of the Economic Relations Division joined the meeting.
BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan, FBCCI President Mahbubul Alam, Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) President Taskeen Ahmed, and Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries President Abdul Muktadir were also present at the meeting.
Speaking at the meeting, BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan emphasized the need for a stable energy supply to support manufacturing, particularly in the production of man-made fibers.
He called for the rapid establishment of regasification units to ensure a continuous gas supply.
The BGMEA president also underscored the need for developing land-based LNG alongside existing floating units to ensure energy security.
Participants also discussed the increasing use of solar power across factories, noting that solar panels have significantly reduced electricity costs.
Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries President Abdul Muktadir highlighted the urgent need for ensuring a steady and reliable gas supply to attract investment in the country’s pharmaceutical industry.
He pointed out that while the country has made notable progress in pharmaceutical manufacturing, including bioreactors, bioethics, and vaccine component production, further infrastructure and energy stability are essential for sustained growth.
Noting that the proposed API Park for the pharmaceuticals sector still lacks sufficient investment, he stressed that “steady and reliable gas supply” would attract foreign and local investors to the sector.
Muktadir also underscored the need to strengthen scientific and technical education in Bangladesh.
“Our universities are producing an oversupply of business graduates, while the real demand lies in science-educated graduates,” he noted.
