US Business Upbeat Investment Opportunities in Bangladesh: discussants in Washington, DC

USA NEWS: Bangladesh under the dynamic Leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is making strong strides towards becoming a middle income country by 2021 and to achieve that goal needs a massive investment from USA and elsewhere. Bangladesh Ambassador to USA Akramul Qader said this in Washington, DC July14 while addressing a luncheon discussion of high ranking executives of US companies, organized by Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU), a leading think tank founded in 1955 by US President Dwight Eisenhower. The event was co-hosted by MetLife and Trans-Fast Remittance LLC., two US-based companies with active business presence in Bangladesh.

Highlighting Bangladesh’s achievements since its independence, Ambassador Qader briefed the US businessmen of the government’s vision to fulfill the dreams of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He said that Bangladesh is maintaining an average GDP growth rate of 6% over the last decade and has been able to attract more than one billion US dollar of FDI. Citing various successes in the socio-economic sectors he urged for increased US investment in Bangladesh as well as further increase in bilateral trade. The Ambassador informed the meeting that the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has undertaken various initiatives for regional connectivity with a view to linking Bangladesh to neighboring India, Nepal and Bhutan as well as Myanmar and China via Asian Highway and also railway connection in the course of next couple of years. Referring to Bangladesh’s initiative for a deep sea-port in Chittagong , Ambassador Qader commented this would turn Bangladesh into a regional hub. Joining the discussion  Diana Keegan, Director, International Government Relations of MetLife LLC. Informed that MetLife has its presence in Bangladesh for the last 50 years. She also said that the company is planning to expand its operation by offering some new products. The other co-host  Samish Kumar informed that they are in a high regulated sector in Bangladesh for last three years and are very satisfied with their business. Samish, in particular, expressed satisfaction for the cooperation he received in interactions with the government functionaries..Peter J. Tichansky President and CEO of BCIU commented that Bangladesh is being quite wrongly portrayed only as a poor country, despite its tremendous potential. The participants, who have a firsthand knowledge of doing business in Bangladesh spoke very positively and also expressed great hope for the future of Bangladesh economy.

In his closing remarks, Ambassador Qader highlighted the empowerment of women in Bangladesh. He mentioned that Bangladesh already achieved gender parity in Primary and Secondary School enrollment. 80% of the four million workforce in the RMG sector is women folk and any investment there would not only bring economic emancipation but also help reduce gender gap in economic activities, he said. Attended by leading businessmen, the event is part of Embassy’s efforts to reach out to the stakeholders in the US having deep interests in Bangladesh.