Bida plans dedicated relationship managers to enhance services
Corporate executives to work for government on deputation
The Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida) is planning to introduce dedicated relationship managers to provide effective one-stop services for investors, ensuring they receive all necessary government services, according to its Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun.
Instead of relying on government officials, the investment promotion authority plans to hire private sector executives on a contractual basis for deputation, Harun said at a seminar organised by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) in the capital today.
"Let your executives work for Bida for a year. The government will cover their salary, and they will return to their companies later," he said addressing businesses.
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Harun, who recently returned to Bangladesh after a successful private sector career abroad, is now leading efforts to promote investment in the country.
In addition to ongoing reforms aimed at enhancing the business and investment climate, the government is also planning immediate steps to ease doing business in Bangladesh, he added.
For example, Harun mentioned that practical issues surrounding security verification for visas for foreign investors and experts could be resolved by changing existing rules.
"If the home ministry does not communicate any objections within 30 days, Bida will consider it as clearance," he added.
A long-standing issue has been the lack of coordination among government offices, which has led to poor services for investors, he mentioned.
No human interaction in government services will be the key to check corruption, he said, adding that the service provider officials would work at the back-end while complete digitalisation of the services would make investors' life hassle-free.
Lutfey Siddiqi, special envoy to the chief adviser, who spoke as the chief guest at the seminar titled "Reform for ICT Industry Growth" urged the private sector to engage more deeply with reform commissions to bring about real change.
He questioned why so many government committees are formed without private sector representation and why government officials are transferred shortly after they have learned the technical aspects of a sector.
He added that the interim government is working on both immediate reforms and mid-term strategies to ensure the sustainability of these changes over the long term.
