Bangladesh News Bangladesh Economy & Development

[Isa Khan]

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen on Friday said the government has taken a decision to reduce the number of coal-based projects in the country with an aim to prioritise on green and renewable energy.

“We are looking for renewable energy and green energy. Although, we implemented some coal-based projects, we have decided to reduce the number of these projects,” the minister said while briefing the media through a virtual platform on the outcomes of the ‘Leaders’ Summit on Climate’, hosted by US President Joe Biden.

The minister said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged developed countries to ensure annual target of mobilising $100 billion climate funder as committed by them.

Momen said that, “The commitments made by the world leaders in the leadership summit prompted him to believe that the creation of the $100 billion fund will not be a problem now.”

“Funding is not a problem If there is a political commitment,” the minister said adding that the summit expressed firm commitment in this regard.

“The commitment we got from the US is very crucial in this regard. Mobiising this fund will not be difficult” he further said.

“I am very much optimistic that the fund can be created before the COP26,” he added.

“During his visit to Dhaka, John Kerry told us that several financial institutions had already made commitment to provide 30 billion US dollar for climate fund” the minister said.

“And Mr Kerry also mentioned that a private business group in the US was interested in investing 1000 billion US dollar in climate projects like renewable energy” Dr Momen added.

Momen said, the commitment by the US to slash carbon emission by 50 per cent by 2030 is very encouraging.

Similar commitments were made by Japan, Canada, Germany and European countries, he added.

In the summit, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the fund should be distributed at a ratio of 50:50 between mitigation and adaptation, Dr Momen said.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina put forward four suggestions to global leaders to fight climate change challenges with a strong collective response.

“Her suggestions include announcing an immediate and ambitious action plan by developed countries to reduce their carbon emissions to keep the global temperature at 1.5 degrees Celsius with focus on mitigation measures; and ensuring the annual target of 100 billion US dollars which should be balanced 50:50 between adaptation and mitigation with a special attention to the vulnerable countries while pursuing losses and damages”.

Bangladesh to reduce coal-based projects, Momen says

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen on Friday said the government has taken a decision to reduce the number of coal-based projects in the country with an aim to prioritise on green and renewable energy. “We are looking for renewable energy and green energy. Although, we implemented some coal-bas

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

 

[Isa Khan]

A good number of banks are going towards branchless banking in recent times by way of rolling out different digital products as a part of their efforts to reach out to more people both in rural and urban areas.

This is also helping them decrease the cost of doing business in an efficient manner as the expenditure of digital banking is much less than the manual one, said managing directors of four banks.

People's habit of branch-led banking has also reduced to a great extent as a large number of clients now prefer to settle transactions sitting from their homes by using internet or mobile app-based banking in order to protect themselves from the coronavirus.

Plenty of local banks have already allowed clients to open accounts without visiting branches during the times of the pandemic to expedite branchless banking to push the clients' habit further.

Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director of Mutual Trust Bank (MTB), said the lender had opened only one branch in the last two years.

"We do not have any plan to set up excessive branches in the days ahead except in case of an emergency requirement," he said.

The MTB, which has 118 branches across the country, has decided to expand its financial services in the remotest parts of the country riding on the digital means.

The lender will carry out its banking services by collaborating with fintechs, Rahman said.

"We are going to introduce a new method that will allow clients to give instalments of their deposit pension scheme (DPS) through mobile financial services (MFS) providers," he said.

In addition, the bank is trying to roll out lending services for clients from all walks of life through MFS providers, he said.

The central bank should lay emphasis on the matter as well such that branchless banking gains momentum, he said.

The model of branchless banking also helps reduce the cost of doing business as well, Rahman said.

Banks have to spend around Tk 1 crore to set up a branch in the major cities including appointing at least 10 officials to run operations.

If they want to set up such an outlet in rural areas, they must count between Tk 50 lakh and Tk 60 lakh.

Despite that, banks have been forced to expand their branches over the years as people in the country are largely habituated to do banking by going to outlets.

Some banks, which had earlier focused on branchless banking in providing financial services, have struggled to make the method attractive for commoners.

Then came the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the country in March last year.

People had been barred from going outside of their homes amidst a lockdown that had also compelled banks to close a good number of branches for the time being, leaving clients with no choice but to use technology to conduct transactions.

The pandemic also created obstacles for banks to set up branches last year. In such a situation, both banks and customers learnt more techniques to do more branchless banking than before.

The country now faces a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has already given another boost to digital banking.

Although the majority of banks had failed to manage their expected profit for expansion of their businesses by opening new branches last year, they have embraced different digital models to make their services available for people.

Banks set up only 107 branches in 2020 instead of an average figure of 300-400 per year, data from the central bank showed.

Md Arfan Ali, managing director of Bank Asia, said his bank had set up only seven branches in the last two years and it does not have any strong plan to open such outlets in the days ahead.

"But we have a roadmap to open a good number of sub-branches in the days ahead to operate our digital banking activities in rural areas," he said.

Sub-branch offers limited-scale banking services where five-six officials are usually appointed.

Bank Asia has already established the agent banking window in a massive manner and it now works on popularising the retail banking operated by the micro-merchant account holder.

The small businesses, like owners of grocery shops, are allowed to open micro-merchant accounts with banks as per the central banking guidelines.

Customers can pay their bills against their purchased products from the shops through scanning quick response (QR) codes by using their smartphones.

In addition, remittance receivers and the beneficiaries of different safety net programmes run by the government will be able to withdraw money from the shops of micro merchant accountholders.

This will lessen the requirements of branches to a great extent, Ali said.

Dutch Bangla Bank has been taking up initiatives to embrace the branchless model since 2005, said its managing director, Abul Kashem Md Shirin.

"We have 210 branches to serve 3 crore clients. We would have been unable to cater banking services had different models of the branchless banking not been introduced," he said.

The bank has already gained huge popularity by rolling out MFS, agent banking, ATM service and so on.

The bank opened 20 branches in the last two years, but it will set up a maximum of 20 branches in the next five years.

A bank, which manages strong CAMELS rating from the central bank, is supposed to open the highest 12 branches per year.

Banks with lower CAMELS rating are permitted to open a lesser number of branches than the strong ones.

The CAMELS is a recognized international rating system that bank supervisory authorities use in order to rate financial institutions according to six factors represented by its acronym.

The CAMELS acronym stands for "capital adequacy, asset quality, management, earnings, liquidity, and sensitivity".

Dhaka Bank even now allows businesses to open letters of credit sitting from their homes or offices, said Emranul Huq, managing director of the bank.

The bank has recently rolled out a virtual banking product namely "Dhaka Bank Trade Cloud", helping clients to do overseas trade smoothly, he said.

This has helped branchless banking flourish further in the country.

As much as 1,576 branches had become loss-making last year, which was 15 per cent of the total 10,685 outlets, the BB data showed.

The business slowdown deriving from the pandemic fuelled the rise in the number of loss-making branches, encouraging lenders to adopt branchless banking.

In most cases, the requirement of smartphones turned digital banking essential to be carried out by clients, said Atiur Rahman, a former governor of the central bank.

Poor people are still far away from managing such digital devices, so the government should take measures to this end, he said.

The existing tax regime over the import of smartphones can be reduced to make the device available among the marginal people, he said.

Branchless banking gaining ground

A good number of banks are going towards branchless banking in recent times by way of rolling out different digital products as a part of their efforts to reach out to more people both in rural and urban areas.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Remittance increased 39 per cent year-on-year to $20 billion in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year.

This has happened for the first time in the history of Bangladesh for the remittance to cross the $20 billion-mark in the first 10 months of any fiscal year. Even, the country did not register remittance inflow over $20 billion in a single fiscal year in the past, according to data by Bangladesh Bank. The expatriate Bangladeshis sent home $2.06 billion in April, a year-on-year increase of 89 per cent.

Remittance crosses record $20b in 10 months

Remittance increased 39 per cent year-on-year to $20 billion in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Export earnings rose six times year-on-year to hit $3.13 billion in April this year thanks to the rebound of apparel shipment with the reopening of the US and European economies.

In April last year, the export figure was only $0.52 billion, the lowest in the history of Bangladesh. Of the amount, only $0.37 billion came from apparel shipment, the country's biggest export earning sector.

The countrywide lockdown and shutdown of most of the factories after the Covid-19 outbreak did the damage last year. Workers and factory owners were in the confusion whether the factories would be reopened or not.

Despite posting an abnormal hike, export earnings of April this year is still 6.44 per cent below the monthly target of $3.35 billion, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau.

In the first 10 months to April this fiscal year, export receipt from garment shipment also increased by 6.24 per cent year-on-year to $26 billion, showing resilience against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Of the total earnings from the garment sector, some $13.99 billion came from shipment of knitwear items, registering a 15.34 percent year-on-year positive growth, while earnings from woven shipment fell 2.71 per cent year-on-year to $12 billion.

The demand for casual knitwear items continued increasing keeping pace with their shipment even during the crisis moment, as people were staying at home for longer periods.

Exports rise six times to hit $3.13b

Export earnings rose six times year-on-year to hit $3.13 billion in April this year thanks to the rebound of apparel shipment with the reopening of the US and European economies.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Kaptaan]

Well done Bangladesh. I have been saying for some time forget about India. As the recent covid disaster has exposed that country is just a huge swamp. The only thing it brings is weight of numbers of it's population. If you place enough zeros on to anything it gains attention. Meanning a cent is nothing but if you get enough cents together you can make billions of dollars.

But Bangladesh is I believe the next East Asian Tiger. What is amazing is you were called the basketcase but look at you know. Just keep religion out of public life, mullahs muzzled like caninines and focus just on economy and you shall rise ....

 

[Raptor]

Well done Bangladesh. I have been saying for some time forget about India. As the recent covid disaster has exposed that country is just a huge swamp. The only thing it brings is weight of numbers of it's population. If you place enough zeros on to anything it gains attention. Meanning a cent is nothing but if you get enough cents together you can make billions of dollars.

But Bangladesh is I believe the next East Asian Tiger. What is amazing is you were called the basketcase but look at you know. Just keep religion out of public life, mullahs muzzled like caninines and focus just on economy and you shall rise ....

somehow you have to bring india into discussion with your bias.

 

[Nilgiri]

somehow you have to bring india into discussion with your bias.

In any case, you get down to details on their "argument" , sticking purely to per capita/per person (yes lets forget the total size of population scaling for a while)....and they turn tail inevitably:

Broadsheet Saga. Tale of mega corruption.

Yet 650,000 people were detained in the upheaval and 230,000 people were prosecuted in military courts, according to official figures. About 300 people died in prison, including 171 who died after being tortured. No fcuking about with Broadsheet. Instead 100s hauled to prisons, tortured...

defencehub.live

He still has not gotten back to me about:

A mean wealth of 17.3k USD per adult
A median wealth of 4k per adult.

Take a wild guess what these say in Pakistan's case?

In any case, it is not a "bias" he has. It is a deep set animus and there is little to do about it. Cherrypicked anecdotes are the be all end all, rather than numbers and actual analysis on the subject.

The argument of "per person" also magically disappears w.r.t covid too.

I mean what is the testing rate per person in his country and Bangladesh?

Something like 4 - 5 times less than India (on pure per capita basis). Total numbers are like 24 - 48 times less. So how exactly are the infection and death numbers the same credibility?

*Shrug* I guess it reflects the true underlying development and institutional development of the countries in the end.

So we are going to of course get the similar tragedy media coverage in the news that countries that do an actual testing regime in the end (like developed world did and also got plenty of bad media on their crisis in 2020 as result).

In any case like I have said before, best to ignore....and focus on:

Getting our savings from 1 trillion to 2 trillion USD ASAP

Get our service exports from current ~200 billion to 250 and 300 billion (i.e export an "already inflated" pakistan GDP in services alone) ASAP

Get goods exports from where it stuck at a while (330 billion) to 500 billion level ASAP.

Get our market capitalisation (around 2.5 trillion now) to 3 trillion and then 4 trillion USD ASAP

Get our FDI from current ~60 billion a year to 100 billion a year ASAP

This can all be compared "per person" to the other two large-population countries in south asia. But hard numbers (versus govt "data" with its "standards") is not their forte to begin with.

In fact kind of hillarious that one is doing its best to get rid of "GSP+" (by some TLP banned but not banned french/EU iz bad drama by their own hand) while other is smartly hanging on to it as long as possible after LDC graduation.

But the thing is India cannot rely on sole export of one thing like these two in first place. We necessarily need to export a broad base (of non GSP/GSP+ reliant) of both goods and services....be it metro train sets or pharmaceuticals ....and make this base broader and deeper to say electronics.

So joking time is best done with other worthies you see.

There are plenty of jokes to be had where it matters among say Indians and Iranians when we analyse our chess grandmasters games and talk about space science and rocketry both are involved in (among other intellectual pursuit and how it reflects in economy going forward).

Jokes about Afghanistan and the "attachment-faker" country to it (by history grounding etc)....the voids between our two that similarly produce voids in these high-pursuit areas (forget about producing even one so we can do "per person"). Things like that. The nicknames do get pretty awful....not worth repeating here.

 

[Isa Khan]

Survey: 69% businesses received no stimulus funds

SANEM and The Asia Foundation found the results in the fourth round of a nationwide firm-level survey with 500 business entities

www.dhakatribune.com

Business confidence hits rock bottom: survey

Business confidence in Bangladesh plunged to 41.39 points for the April to June quarter, the lowest level in a year, as an alarming surge in coronavirus infections has deepened uncertainty and threatened the economic recovery, according to a new survey.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Yellow tea produced for first time

After black, green and white tea, growers in Bangladesh have developed highly valued yellow tea, a development that will take the country to another step forward in saving foreign currencies spent on importing expensive varieties of the beverage.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Govt to implement 3,076.22C project to enhance rural electrification network​

The government has undertaken a big move to enhance the capacity and also ensure modernization of the distribution network of Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board (BREB), which is expected to benefit and ensure uninterrupted power supply to some 3,430,000 consumers in the Khulna division.

The BREB under the Power Division will implement the project with an estimated cost of Tk3,076.22 crore by June 2025.

Of the total project cost, Tk567.26 crore will come from the government of Bangladesh portion, Tk808.88 crore will come from the respective organization’s own fund while the rest of Tk1,700.07 crore as project assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The project titled “Modernization of power distribution system and capacity enhancement of BREB (Khulna division)” is likely to be placed before the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) on Tuesday, said a Planning Commission official.

Ecnec Chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will preside over the meeting virtually from her official Ganabhaban residence while ministers, state ministers, secretaries, and planning commission members will join the meeting from the NEC conference room in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.

The official said the main objectives of the project are enhancing the network capacity of BREB and its up-gradation, meeting the growing power demand, ensuring an uninterrupted, reliable, cost-efficient power distribution system, and thus reducing the system loss in power distribution.

The project area covers nine Palli Bidyut Samities of BREB -Bagerhat, Jessore-1, Jessore-2, Jhenaidah, Khulna, Kushtia, Magura, Meherpur, and Satkhira.

The project will also help improve household incomes by reducing expenses on kerosene for cooking as well as lighting and provide opportunities for energy-based economic activities.

Talking to BSS, a Planning Commission member preferring anonymity said that the demand for power is increasing all over the country including in Khulna Division, so there is a need for enhancing the capacity of the distribution network.

“Under the circumstances, the project has been framed and it will cover almost the entire Khulna division,” the official said adding that standard power distribution network would be developed under the project.

The main project operations include construction of 51 numbers of 33/11 KV new power substations, erection of 33kv new/1161km underground lines, 11 KV new/10,685km underground lines, installation of 1,300 insulated conductors, conversion of 3,300 km lines from LT to HT, conversion of 2,874 km HT 1 phase to 3 phase and land purchase of 2040 decimals.

Meanwhile, the Ecnec meeting to be held on Tuesday, is also likely to consider a good number of projects that include Establishment of telecommunication network for Economic Zones, 1st phase, with Tk95.12 crore; Construction of Panguchi Bridge over River Panguchi on Signboard-Morolganj-Rayenda-Shoronkhola-Bogi road with Tk912.33 crore; Construction of Sheikh Russell mini stadiums at upazila level, 2nd phase, with Tk1,649.32 crore; Construction of multi-storey building of the Department of Public Libraries with Tk524.25 crore; Establishment of Super Specialized Hospital under BSMMU, 1st revised; Road development, construction of bridges and culverts from Karigarpara to Bilaichori under Rangamati district with Tk338.54 crore; Development of important rural infrastructures of Comilla, Brahmanbaria and Chandpur districts with Tk2,500 crore; Flood control, drainage and irrigation project at Patia upazila in Chittagong district with Tk1,158.36 crore and rehabilitation and expansion of command areas of Teesta Irrigation project with Tk1,452.33 crore.

Govt to implement 3,076.22C project to enhance rural electrification network

The project is to be implemented by June 2025

www.dhakatribune.com

 

[Isa Khan]

The country's foreign exchange reserves today hit a new record of $45.1 billion thanks to the upward trend of remittance and lower import payments.

The reserves, one of the major macroeconomic indicators of an economy, went up 36.22 per cent in the last one year as the figure stood at $33.11 billion on April 30 in 2020, according to data from the central bank.

A strong inflow of remittance has largely helped the country build up the foreign exchange reserve, a Bangladesh Bank official said.

Between July and April this fiscal year, the Bangladeshi diaspora sent remittances worth $20.66 billion, up 39 per cent year-on-year.

Imports, however, slightly increased 1.9 percent year-on-year to $37.06 billion in the first eight months of this fiscal year.

The growth of import has maintained a feeble trend in recent months, which is not expected given the country's economic volume, the official said.

This has helped push the foreign exchange reserve up as well.

But, the 45-billion mark of the reserve will not sustain for long as the country will have to pay $1.74 billion tomorrow to settle import payments to the member countries of the Asian Clearing Union (ACU).

The ACU is an arrangement by which the participants settle payments for intra-regional transactions among the participating central banks on a net multilateral basis.

Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are members of the ACU headquartered in Tehran.

Forex reserve hits $45.1b, a new record

The country's foreign exchange reserves today hit a new record of $45.1 billion thanks to the upward trend of remittance and lower import payments.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Foreign investors can now be sponsors of mutual funds

No foreign company as a sponsor of a mutual fund can subscribe to more than 25% of the fund size

www.dhakatribune.com

 

[Isa Khan]

https://www.facebook.com/dailystarnews/posts/3509891439110700

FDI in Bangladesh fell over 10% last year

Bangladesh received $2.56 billion FDI in 2020

www.dhakatribune.com

Ceramic makers seek low-cost funds

The country’s ceramic manufacturers have demanded low-cost funds on easy terms for payment of their workers’ salaries, allowances and Eid bonuses.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Nokia – a globally renowned handset manufacturer from Finland – is ready to launch its first production unit in Bangladesh, following other celebrated brands such as Samsung, Oppo and Realme.

Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd, a joint venture of UK based Vibrant Software and Bangladesh's Union Group, secured a provisional licence from the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) this March for manufacturing and assembling Nokia phones locally.

The conglomerate is presently waiting for clearance from the National Board of Revenue (NBR), and after getting it, they will open LC (letter of credit) for importing machineries and accessories to kick start the production process, industry insiders told The Business Standard.

It plans to invest around $40 million for setting up a factory and other infrastructure at Bangabandhu Hi-Tech City in Gazipur, said sources, adding that the production was set to begin before Eid-al-Fitr, but the company changed their plans amid the spike in Covid-19 infections.

Nokia made a comeback to the global smartphone market four years ago. HMD Global, the company behind Nokia's return, revived the brand by bringing new dimensions in the smartphone market and gradually developing its market share.

Nokia inarguably lags far behind its former legacy as the world's biggest phone brand, but its commitment to a bloatware-free user experience has helped it maintain a distinct identity, especially in the entry-level and budget segments of the smartphone market.

The brand will focus on the same segments in the Bangladeshi smartphone market too.

Grameen Distribution Ltd – a concern of Grameen Bank – applied for the vendorship of Nokia last year, but the BTRC had denied it, an insider with direct knowledge on the matter said.

After Nokia launched production in Bangladesh, the country will host production units from almost all of the world's renowned mobile brands, excluding Apple, Xiaomi and Huawei.

Responding to a query, Union Group Managing Director Raquibul Kabir said, "We will produce Bangladeshi made Nokia smartphones. If everything goes according to our plan, Bangladeshi customers will soon be able to grab locally made Nokia handsets.

But the Nokia country office in Bangladesh declined to comment on the matter.

Commenting on the issue, Posts and Telecommunication Minister Mustafa Jabbar said, "The BTRC has granted a provisional license to the Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd for producing Nokia mobile phones in the country.

"Some other brands have also expressed their interest in setting up factories here. I am optimistic that Bangladesh will be able to meet the local market demand with domestically manufactured handsets if other brands open factories here along with Nokia by 2022."

Nokia has been a very popular mobile phone brand from the very beginning of the brand's journey in Bangladesh due to the quality and durability of its devices.

Industry insiders had expected that the once top brand would open its production unit in Bangladesh much earlier when many newer brands set up their factories here. The brand has been trying to get the BTRC's approval for a few years but could not secure it due to internal issues.

On 24 May 2017, Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd signed a land lease agreement with Summit Technopolis Ltd – a subsidiary of Summit Group – to set up a mobile phone assembling plant along with two other facilities.

But it took four years to get the license for setting up the factory.

The BTRC finally granted a provisional certificate for Mobile Phone Handset Manufacturer and Vendor Enlistment Certificate to Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd for three years on March 23.

Under the certification, the vendor will be allowed to import four types of parts, including Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and Printed Circuit Board Assembly (PCBA), Complete Knock Down (CKD) and Semi Knock Down (SKD) parts, radio equipment and other machineries related to mobile phone handset manufacturing.

Vibrant will also import equipment to set up a testing laboratory as part of their plant.

Conditions for full certification

Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd will have to follow 25 terms and conditions to get the full approval – Category-A certification – from the BTRC.

Some of these conditions are – the vendor must build its own testing lab, at least 3% of the locally assembled or manufactured mobile phone handsets must be sent to an internationally recognised testing lab to assess the quality, and the technical and quality assurance certificate must be submitted to the commission.

Apart from these, to ensure the after sales service, the enlisted manufacturer has to establish a minimum of four service centers in Dhaka, three in Chattogram, two each in all other divisional cities and one service center each in every district across the country.

The conditions also state that export and import of radio communication equipment related to mobile phone handset manufacturing and testing laboratory is strictly prohibited without prior permission from the BTRC.

The commission may appoint inspectors by order in writing to inspect the testing lab/factory/radio communication equipment store/office from time to time without prior notice.

The enlisted vendor also has to make necessary arrangements for e-waste management. All information of e-waste and recycling should be recorded in a register by the organisation and a bi-annual report must be submitted to the BTRC.

The commission also put a bar on importing old or used PCB or PCBA accessories.

Local manufacturing industry

The local mobile handset manufacturing industry began its journey back in 2017 when electronics brand Walton launched production in Bangladesh.

Since then, a total of ten brands – including global smartphone vendors Samsung, Symphony, Oppo, Realme – began production here. These brands produce 85% of the smartphones in the local market and meet 55% of local demand for both smartphones and feature phones.

According to the BTRC, the total number of handsets manufactured and imported in the country in the 2019-20 fiscal year was 29.48 million units. Of which, 16.21 million units were manufactured locally by 10 companies, whereas 13.27 million units were imported.

Locally manufactured handsets of international brands cost around 30% less than the imported ones, Bangladesh Mobile Phone Importers Association's (BMPIA) Joint Secretary Mohammad Mesbah Uddin pointed out.

Nokia ready for ‘Made in Bangladesh’ smartphones

Vibrant Software (BD) Ltd, a joint venture of UK based Vibrant Software and Bangladesh’s Union Group, has secured a provisional license from BTRC for this initiative

www.tbsnews.net

 

[Isa Khan]

The government will set up a modern and high-frequency telecommunication network at five economic zones and tourism parks in Sylhet, Jamalpur and Cox's Bazar, with an aim to accelerate the country's economic development.

During a virtual meeting yesterday, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved a project of the posts and telecommunications division named "Setting up Telecommunication Network at Economic Zones (Phase-1)", involving Tk 95.12 crore.

Ecnec Chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over the meeting from Gono Bhaban.

After the meeting, Planning Minister MA Mannan said the government was going for a modernised telecommunication network at the under-construction economic zones as foreign investors sought assurance of quality telecommunication and internet services before investment.

The Ecnec approved a total of 10 projects involving an estimated cost of Tk 11,901.33 crore.

Of the sum, Tk 8,991.44 crore will come from the state coffer, Tk 809.98 crore from related government agencies, and Tk 2,099.91 crore as project assistance.

The Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Ltd (BTCL) will implement the telecommunication network project at the Srihatta Economic Zone in Moulvibazar, the Jamalpur Economic Zone, two tourism parks at Sabrang and Naf in Teknaf, and the Sonadia Tourism Park in Moheshkhali.

The project tenure runs from January 2021 to June 2023.

The project activities include setting up high-power dense wavelength division multiplexing optical fibre transmission link, establishing telecom exchange with 6,000 connection capacity, installing routers with high-speed internet back up, and constructing a telecom building in each of the zones.

The prime minister emphasised that state-owned companies like BTCL implement such projects on their own fund, the planning minister told a virtual media briefing.

"The prime minister stressed that state-owned entities established for doing business should try to be independent so that they do not have to rely on government grants," the minister said.

The Ecnec approved a proposal seeking the extension of one and a half years and an additional Tk 195 crore for a project to set up a super-specialised hospital with modern healthcare facilities at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.

The estimated project cost was earlier fixed at Tk 1,366.34 crore. As per the approved proposal, the cost has gone up by 14.3 per cent to Tk 1,561.18 crore.

Initially, the project tenure was from January 2016 to December 2019, and it was earlier extended to December 2020. The new deadline is June 2022.

The prime minister expressed concern over the delay in implementing the super-specialised hospital project and ordered to complete it fast, Mannan said.

Moshammat Nasima Begum, a member of the socio-economic infrastructure department of the planning commission, said the implementation was delayed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic as Korean consultants went back.

A South Korean consulting firm conducted the feasibility study of the project in 2014, she said.

Another project that received the nod was Tk 1,452.33 crore Rehabilitation and Expansion of Command area of the Teesta Irrigation Project. The implementation period is January 2021 to June 2024.

5 economic zones to get modern telecom network

The government will set up a modern and high-frequency telecommunication network at five economic zones and tourism parks in Sylhet, Jamalpur and Cox’s Bazar, with an aim to accelerate the country’s economic development.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune/posts/5382704385138169

 

[Isa Khan]

Bangladesh Bank issues guideline on use of public fund kept with MFS

Bangladesh Bank yesterday issued guidelines specifying the sole ways in which public money deposited in the accounts operated by mobile financial service (MFS) and e-money service providers can be used.

www.thedailystar.net

Courier services brought under banking umbrella

Bangladesh Bank yesterday allowed courier service providers (CSPs) to use banking channels to settle payments for their services.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

Hili land port already bags 350C in revenue before FY21 ends

Despite its target of Tk243.81 crore for the 10 months of the fiscal, the land port bagged Tk350.24 crore from July 2020 up to April this year

www.dhakatribune.com

2nd wave of Covid-19 'nail in coffin' for aviation sector: top airlines officials

Speakers, including aviation experts and top officials of the country’s three airlines, today said the second wave of Covid-19 has hit the aviation sector at a time when it was trying to turn around, braving the losses caused by the first wave of the virus last year.

www.thedailystar.net

 

[Isa Khan]

6 more coaches of metro train reach Mongla port

As part of the second consignment, six more coaches of metro train have reached Mongla port.

www.thedailystar.net

BPDB Chairman: Deal period with rental power plant owners cannot be extended

The government has to purchase electricity at a much higher rate from the private power producers and sell it to the consumers at a lower rate

www.dhakatribune.com

 

[Isa Khan]

Three years before we reach pre-Covid growth: Finance

The finance ministry reported economic loss amounting to around Tk85,000 crore during the shutdown. In reality, the amount was even higher, given the size of the GDP

www.tbsnews.net

Bangladesh receives $684.41 million as remittance in just 5 days

Expatriate Bangladeshis sent $2.06 billion in remittance last month

www.dhakatribune.com

Dhaka stocks gain for fifth consecutive day

The stock market gained today maintaining the rising trend of the last five consecutive trading days thanks to the increased participation of investors.

www.thedailystar.net

Progress in business climate laudable, but further improvement needed

The relationship between Japan and Bangladesh is a trusted and time-tested one. Bangladesh became Japan’s biggest recipient of the Official Development Assistance in 2020. Since the Covid-19 pandemic started more than a year ago, there has been a lot of talks and anticipation about Japanese...

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