Bangladesh has become a perfect and risk-free place for more Chinese investments, speakers said at a seminar in Dhaka on Saturday.
They said the government of Bangladesh has been creating a business environment to attract foreign investments in sectors like infrastructure development, ICT, roads and highways, and power and energy.
Speakers also said the Chinese government and businesses have been working as one of the carriers of Bangladesh’s development.
They said Bangladesh’s present development scenario has been providing confidence to attract more investment from China, and the Chinese counterparts should take this advantage.
The seminar titled, “China-Bangladesh Enterprises High-quality Development Forum – Achievements and Way Forward” was held at the Bangabandhu Bangladesh-China Friendship Exhibition Center (BBCFEC) at Purbachal in Dhaka.
Addressing the seminar as the chief guest, Additional Secretary of Economic Relations Division (ERD) AHM Jahangir said the Chinese investment in Bangladesh is visible enough.
“The Chinese companies doing business in Bangladesh are making the best profits than others. Rather investing in Bangladesh is less risky for them. So, we hope more and more Chinese investment in Bangladesh in the coming days.”
Mentioning the characteristics of Chinese investments in Bangladesh, Jahangir said the majority of it is G2G projects and the other is government tender.
“The internal procedure of signing the projects is slow with China. I urge the Chinese government to reduce the time of processing the investment in Bangladesh,” he added.
In his welcome speech, Chinese Enterprises Association in Bangladesh (CEAB) President and CCECC Bangladesh Ltd Chairman Ke Changliang said, “Chinese is the infrastructure construction hero in the world, even in Bangladesh. Chinese companies are quite active in different important mega projects.
“A total of 12 roads and 21 bridges totalling a length of 550 kilometres have been built, while seven railway lines with a total length of 541.9 kilometres have been constructed by Chinese enterprises.”
He said, “Also, Chinese enterprises have invested in various energy fields such as coal, solar, and wind power plants, making the energy mix increasingly diversified.”
Changliang added, “Now Chinese companies have made significant investments in the manufacturing sector, and set up manufacturing plants and created half a million jobs in Bangladesh. In the EPZ area, 25 per cent of investors are Chinese.”
Chinese companies have been working hard and making a great achievement and contribution to the rapid socio-economic development of Bangladesh, he said.
“Looking into the future, we commit to strengthen ties with all parties in Bangladesh, to prompt the bilateral economic cooperation to a higher level.”
Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCCI) Secretary General Al Mamun Mridha said, “Bangladesh and China have a remarkable journey of high-quality development, innovation, and collaboration under the Belt and Road Initiative.
“Chinese companies have been instrumental in transforming our nation, contributing to various sectors of our economy. In the coming years, we aspire to further strengthen our ties, explore new avenues of cooperation, and continue to work towards mutual prosperity.”
He added, “The Belt and Road Initiative has been a beacon of hope, and together, we will continue to illuminate the path toward high-quality development and a brighter future for both our nations.”
The event was also addressed by Economic and Commercial Counsellor of Embassy of China to Bangladesh Song Yang, First Vice-President of BGMEA Syed Nazrul Islam, Chief Engineer of Bangladesh Bridge Authority Quazi Muhammad Ferdous, Executive President of BKMEA Mohammad Hatem, PPP specialist of Public Private Partnership Authority AM Al-Amin, Honorary President of CEAB and Managing Director of LDC group Zhuang Lifeng, representative of Information and Communications Technology Branch, CEAB, CTO of Huawei South Asia Ma Jian, Vice-President of Power and Energy Branch of CEAB and Deputy Country Manager of PowerChina in Bangladesh Han Kun, Advisor of S Alam Group ASM Alamgir Kabir, Managing Director of Powervision Group Mojibur Rahman.
