More FDI in logistics sector sought 

Bangladesh needs huge investment in the logistics sector to ensure sustainable development in line with its economic growth, experts said at an event on Sunday.

Highlighting the role of logistics to ensure smooth supply chain and export diversification, speakers at the daylong discussion programme on "Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Logistics" at the Westin Dhaka in the capital, urged developed countries to invest in Bangladesh.

Addressing the programme as the chief guest Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi said Bangladesh had become a big market with a lot of skilled manpower.

"Bangladesh is a big market for about 170 million people and 45% of them have good purchasing power. Neighbouring India and China are also two big markets. There are all kinds of investment opportunities here," he said.

The minister said the government is providing special facilities for investment and it was possible to produce goods at a low cost in Bangladesh and easily export those to other countries.

During the panel discussion at the programme he programmes organised by the Nordic Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bangladesh (NCCI) in association with the Nordic Embassies-Norwegian Embassy, The Royal Danish Embassy, Embassy of Sweden and Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh, Payra port authority Chairman Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail said the port needed investment to make it more service-oriented.

Ziaur Rahman, regional country manager of H&M, said, that time was the biggest factor in the logistics sector. "The connection of the port with other channels needs to be maintained properly. All the special economic zones should be connected through railroad," he added.

At the discussion, Kamal Ahammed, head of finance and operations of Marks & Spencer, said Bangladesh was on the right path in achieving digital logistics. 

"We are in Bangladesh for 24 years, and directly for 16 years. In this time, there has been a remarkable change in digitisation, UD, and circular economy," he added.

With the digitalisation in logistic systems, lead time can be reduced by 10-15 days. 

NCCI President Tahrin Aman said the LDC graduation will bring about a new set of economic challenges and the support of Nordic countries will be instrumental in continuing on the upward trend.

"Logistics is one of the tools that play an important role in the change and improvement of economic indicators. It provides significant macro contributions to the national economy by creating employment, national income and foreign investment influx," he said.

He also added that the NCCI had organised this event recognising the bold effort of the government to invest in ports and terminals with modern facilities and technologies.

According to the keynote presentation of Angshuman Mitra Mustafi, country manager of Maersk, Bangladesh's logistics sector will be a market of approximately $90 billion by 2025.

At the event, speakers also said integrating 100 special economic zones and multiple port gateways by 2030 will help boost FDI and scale up the use of the inland waterways and railways.

Following the inauguration, four panel discussions titled "Capital", "Digitisation in Trade", "Processes" and "Policies and Roadmap Ahead' were also held.

NCCI President Tahrin Aman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the HSBC Md Mahbub Ur Rahman, among others, attended the programme.

Danish Ambassador Winnie Estrup Petersen, Norwegian Ambassador Espen Rikter-Svendsen, and Swedish Ambassador Alex Berg von Linde also attended the function.

The programme was sponsored by HSBC, Maersk, DSV and H&M Group.