Bangladesh has major opportunities for Japanese businesses: Speakers 

Public and private sector leaders of Bangladesh and Japan discussed the long-standing relationship between the two nations. 

Standard Chartered and Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) recently organised a virtual event titled "Showcase Bangladesh 2021: Bangladesh-Japan Investment Summit".

The virtual forum showcased the partnership potential between Bangladesh and Japan. 

It highlighted the strategic opportunities for Japanese investments, high-potential investment sectors in Bangladesh, and Bangladesh's initiatives to foster foreign investments.  

Delegates representing public and private sectors, policymakers, investors, bankers and the diplomatic communities of both nations were in attendance.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen attended the event as chief guest while Salman Fazlur Rahman, Private Industry and Investment Advisor to the prime minister, was present as guest of honour.

Md Sirazul Islam, executive chairman of BIDA, delivered the keynote speech.

"Our goal is to create a knowledge-based economy. One of the main avenues we want to improve in is the ICT sector of our country. It is proliferating every sphere of commerce and society, and is a key component for further progress," said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen.

Mentioning that Japan has always been our trustworthy developmental partner, the minister said, "They [Japan] have endorsed nearly 16 billion funds for several infrastructural development projects. We greatly appreciate their support, and we are expecting a new wave of forthcoming ventures soon."
 
In his speech, Salman Fazlur Rahman said, "In the post-pandemic age, the supply chain reliability and sustainability has become important and we have to take advantage of the supply chain network diversification. To make this change easier we need to make taka convertible, otherwise we will continue to have issues with foreign exchange."

He went on saying that Standard Chartered can play a role in matchmaking between Japanese investors and Bangladeshi companies. 
"We shouldn't be complacent but continue to aim higher for a closer relationship," he added.