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BSS-43
KAMAL-BRITISH BUSINESS GROUP
Kamal seeks more British investment
DHAKA, Aug 1, 2019 (BSS) – Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has sought more British investments to Bangladesh taking advantage of its investment-friendly environment, young and growing population.
The Finance Minister made the remarks at a breakfast meeting hosted by Chair of British Business Group (BBG) Francois de Maricourt and British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Chatterton Dickson yesterday (Wednesday) held at the British High Commissioner’s Residence, said an official press release.
He said Bangladesh needs more foreign direct investment (FDI) to move forward.
The finance minister said Bangladesh was strategically positioned between China, India and other growing economies of Asia and time has come to move on.
He said the geographic location of Bangladesh has turned the country into a center of regional connectivity, foreign investment and global outsourcing.
Hoping that the country would be able to attain a GDP growth rate of 8.25 to 8.30 percent at the end of the current fiscal year, the finance minister said the GDP growth rate is likely to reach double digit by 2024.
BBG chair Maricourt said the UK companies are amongst the biggest investors in Bangladesh and are fully supporting the country’s growth.
Maricourt, also the CEO of HSBC Bangladesh, noted that Bangladesh is the fastest-growing economy in the Asia Pacific region, with HSBC forecasting growth of 8.1 per cent this year.
High Commissioner Robert Dickson said the UK is a long-standing friend of Bangladesh, and some British companies had been in the country since its birth in 1971.
Dickson also hoped to see the British business presence increase in the years ahead.
Later, with a meeting with the UAE business delegation at the secretariat on the same day, the finance minister welcomed their proposal of setting up an export processing zone in the country.
He also urged them to invest more in Bangladesh.
BSS/PR/GM/MRU/2017hrs