Business Summit can help us achieving MDGs by 2023

With new hopes and aspirations the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) opened the three-day business summit on March 11 (Saturday) in the capital. Of course, it is a prestigious event being held in the country amid volatile economic situation all over the world. The summit is going to be a significant event for two reasons – it is an opportunity for the country to highlight its importance and present it to other nations as an emerging economic force.

Though the FBCCI is organising the event marking its golden jubilee there is, no way, we can attach less importance to the event as it is, in reality, an international event. Ministers from seven countries including the United Kingdom (UK), the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), China, Bhutan and the United Arab Emirates are taking part in the summit being held at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.

Not only ministers of seven countries, 12 multinational companies and more than 200 foreign investors and business leaders from 17 countries are also attending the programme. So, Bangladesh has an immense opportunity to highlight its importance to a pretty large section of international community. Once the importance is established it can take its relationship with them to a further height that might help us open new windows for the expansion of our trades and businesses.

If we can display our potentials especially in trades and businesses and be able to draw foreign investments, it is more likely to help us to turn around by absorbing the shock of the Covid-19 pandemic. Again, if we can prove ourselves to be an emerging economy, the countries and business organisations taking part in the summit will then put their faith in us allowing us to have more and more foreign investments. So, in both respects Bangladesh has a lot to take out of this summit if we can prudently move ahead after the summit is over.

It can help us greatly by enhancing Bangladesh’s economic capacity creating new investment opportunities and promoting business expansion. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also, after the inauguration of the summit, expressed her hope for growing opportunity for business and investment in the country. Highlighting the importance of the country, the prime minister in her inaugural speech, said that Bangladesh had achieved the status of developing country and had become the role model for development in the world.

We also hope that the way Bangladesh has achieved its status of a developing country and become the role model before the world it can create an example of how based on good will and determination a country can march forward. We also agree with the prime minister of the country that the business summit can be a platform to highlight Bangladesh’s progress on both economic and social fronts.

If the potential sectors like textile, agro-processed food, leather, ceramics and jute can be projected to the foreign investors, it will help our country in diversifying our products to the international community. Along with the garment sector, they can also then contribute incredibly to our economic growth.

We would also like to echo with the prime minister that if the summit can provide a platform we will soon be able to achieve the Sustainable Development Growth (SDG) by 2030 after our achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Only if we are sincere enough we can easily reach our targets set by the government in the not-too-distant future.