Compared to our neighboring and competitor countries, Bangladesh significantly lags in terms of industrial, commercial, and economic development.
The primary reasons for this are: failure to make and implement timely and appropriate decisions, prolonged delays in formulating and adopting policies, and an excessively long time taken to implement policies once formulated, often resulting in years, or even decades, of being stuck in a cycle of non-implementation.
The Key to Economic Prosperity: Achieving economic prosperity, eliminating unemployment, and increasing revenue collection hinges solely on industrial and commercial growth. It is imperative to rapidly formulate and implement sound policies on the following matters:
- Export Diversification: Formulate and swiftly implement simplified policies that protect revenue security while creating opportunities for diversifying export products to boost export earnings.
- Backward Linkage Industries: Provide necessary special incentives and facilities for establishing backward linkage industries that produce industrial inputs.
- FDI and Joint Ventures: Adopt long-term, stable policies and offer special incentives to encourage Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and joint ventures.
- One-Stop Service & Export Promotion Bureau Empowerment:
- Grant the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) executive power to provide "One-Stop Service" for all necessary licenses/permits, and approvals and arrangements for electricity and gas supply.
- Grant the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) all necessary executive powers to take measures for increasing exports and diversifying export products.
Anticipated Benefits and Advantages:
- Achieving a balance in import-export trade.
- Increasing local, joint, and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
- Ensuring easy availability of industrial inputs through the establishment of backward linkage industries will lead to widespread expansion of small, medium, and large forward linkage industries across the country, fostering the creation of various service sectors dependent on them.
- The extensive expansion of diverse industrial, commercial, and service sectors will lead to substantial revenue generation and widespread employment opportunities.
- Creating an opportunity to rapidly gain recognition in the global market as a competitive, business-friendly nation.
It is proposed to form an Effective Executive Committee comprising stakeholders from various industrial sectors with extensive practical experience working with different departments and organizations, economic research organizations, prominent economists, and heads or high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Finance, National Board of Revenue, Ministry of Commerce, Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Ministry of Industries, and Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission.
This committee will consider and thoroughly scrutinize suggestions, recommendations, and applications from various domestic and foreign business enterprises, business associations, economic research institutions, and other ministries, organizations, or individuals. Based on these, the committee will present recommendations for rapidly formulating and implementing up-to-date policies and taking necessary effective steps in the interest of the country's long-term economic development and industrial-commercial prosperity.
The committee may be granted all necessary executive powers to rapidly formulate plans, establish policies, and issue orders for their implementation regarding these matters. The committee's decisions shall be considered final. No government, semi-government, or private agency or institution shall have the authority to disregard policies adopted by this committee; in other words, there shall be no hindrance to implementation.
This proposal can be considered with the aim of transforming Bangladesh into a truly business-friendly country and rapidly gaining recognition in the global market.
