1. law, govt and politics
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Bangladesh Newsflash
Editions 42, March 2015
Newsflash Bangladesh is a publication by the
Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) in
Dhaka. The newsflash provides an update in terms
of economic developments, the most important
tenders and a selection of other relevant business
news related to Bangladesh. This newsflash is
shared with a distinctive group of Dutch businesses
with special interests in Bangladesh. It is put
together on the basis of publicly available
information from various sources such as news
articles, press releases, and third party information.
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in
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please refer to the Netherlands Bangladesh
Business Platform – www.nbbp.org, developed by
the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in
Bangladesh in collaboration with Dutch Business
University Nyenrode for the Dutch-Bangladeshi
business community. The platform bundles
information on all that is relevant for doing business
in Bangladesh, providing targeted sector analysis,
insights into risks and opportunities of doing
business, including concrete advice on good
business practices, an overview of the most relevant
government policies for intending investors and
many more.
HIGHLIGHTS
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Helpline launched on pilot basis to record garment workers’ complaints about their workplace
safety, security and rights
Foreign garment makers can apply for utilisation declaration (UD) certificate for duty-free
import of raw materials
Government to issue certificates to small garment makers to export to south Asian countries at
lower duties
Tender floated for constructing Rampal plant near the Sundarbans amid concerns from UNESCO
Board of Investment (BOI) introduces full automation of Visa Support Services, Work Permit and
Setting up of liaison offices. Road shows to boost trade to be organized in England, the
Netherlands and France
Solidaridad Partners with BRAC Dairy to increase the productivity of the smallholders dairy
business
Political update
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Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Joint Secretary General Salah Uddin Ahmed disappeared on
10 March. GoB told the High Court that no law enforcement agency had arrested Salah Uddin or
was able to confirm either his arrest or abduction. His whereabouts are unknown more than 15
days after he went missing
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BNP has been enforcing strike on all working days since 1 February along with the countrywide
indefinite transport blockade from 6 January 2015, demanding a fresh election under a nonparty administration
A Bangladeshi court on 4 March upheld arrest warrants against opposition leader Begum
Khaleda Zia and called her a fugitive after she again failed to appear to face graft charges filed by
Anti-corruption Commission. The arrest warrant was issued on 25 February
Two secular writers killed in March. Deaths are reported to be linked to online blog posts
written by them. One was a US citizen of Bangladeshi origin and the FBI is assisting local police
with the investigation
A group of 16 Ambassadors including EU, EU member states, US, Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea
wrote to the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and to BNP leader Khaleda Zia. They met with the
Foreign Minister on 1 March and Khaleda Zia on 3 March. They encouraged an end to the
violence as well as confidence-building measures including the de-escalation of Bangladesh’s
political conflict
The Election Commission (EC) set 28 April as the date to hold the elections for the city
corporations of Dhaka (North and South) and Chittagong
Textile and Ready Made Garments (RMG)
Cotton consumption to soar on rising garment
exports (The Daily Star) The country's cotton
consumption will continue to rise given the
optimistic forecast for apparel exports
according to the president of Bangladesh Textile
Mills Association. The garment exporters are
looking to hit the $50 billion-mark by the end of
2021, meaning more raw materials will be
needed, Chowdhury told The Daily Star on
March 21 on the sidelines of the Global Cotton
Summit. At
present,
Bangladesh
is
the
second
largest
cotton
importer after China, sourcing in the vital raw
material from the US, India, Uzbekistan and a
host of African countries. In fiscal 2004-05, the
country imported three million bales of cotton
[480 pounds make a bale], but within a span of
ten years the country's consumption doubled,
according to BTMA. Cotton import registered 8
percent growth to 5.6 million bales in fiscal
2013-14 and 6 percent the previous year.
Currently, the local spinners and weavers have
the capacity to consume 10 million bales of
cotton, but they are unable to go into full
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production due to inadequate supply of gas and
power to industrial units.
Apparel makers seek manual-auto mix in
customs count of exports (The Financial
Express) Country's apparel traders seek to
retain the manual system alongside automated
one until efficient realtime update of export
data is ensured in the electronic export
mechanism. They noted that the relevant data
are not being uploaded instantly by the customs
or the central bank after export processing. As
such, the exporters fear, fully automated export
system could delay shipment of goods.
Currently, the central bank is uploading the eEXP data thrice a day and the mechanism is
linked with the customs automated system.
Leaders of the apex apparel body, Bangladesh
Garment
Manufacturers
and
Exporters
Association (BGMEA), made this proposal to the
National Board of Revenue (NBR) at a meeting
on March 29.
Foreign garment makers to get benefit for raw
materials import (The Daily Star) The
government has tagged three conditions to
provide utilisation declaration (UD) certificate
to foreign-owned garment factories, allowing
them to bring raw materials without paying
duties, officials said. To obtain the UD
Newsflash March 2015
certificate, the foreign readymade garment
(RMG) units will have to follow Bangladesh's
wage structure, have to export goods only to
the countries from where the investment has
been made, and those factories will have to
remain outside the export processing zones
(EPZs), they added. The decision was taken at
an inter-ministerial meeting in March at the
Ministry of Commerce (MoC) with its Senior
Secretary Hedayetullah Al Mamoon in the chair.
Helpline launched to receive complaints from
RMG workers (The Dhaka Tribune) A helpline
has been introduced on a pilot basis to record
garment workers’ complaints about their
workplace safety, security and rights so steps
can be taken to resolve them. The government
launched the pilot project for six months in
Ashulia, and if it is successful, such helplines will
be set up across the country. The workers can
drop complaints simply making a call from their
mobile phone handsets. “This is to take
effective steps to address the workers’ concerns
about safety, security and rights,” said Labour
and Employment Minister Mujibul Haque at the
launching ceremony at his office. He hoped it
would be helpful for the workers regarding the
prevailing problems in the country’s largest
industrial sector. “It (the project) can also
reduce the worker-owner dispute to zero level
and help increase productivity in the factories,”
the minister added. The Help Line – 0800 44 55
000 – will be run by the Department of
Inspection for Factories and Establishments
(DIFE).
Denim show takes off in Dhaka (The Daily Star)
A two-day denim and jeans took place in March
to showcase the country's denim and jeans
items
to
international
buyers.
The
denimsandjeans.com organised the exhibition
at Radisson hotel with support from Germany's
international
cooperation
agency
GIZ.
Twenty-six
firms
from
Bangladesh,
India, Pakistan,
Germany, Turkey, Brazil and China are
displaying trousers, fabrics and machinery.
Many brands, buying houses, entrepreneurs
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and fashion professionals involved in
technology, chemicals and piece dyes, have
been invited to the event from Europe, USA, UK
and several Asian countries, organisers said.
Small garment makers stand to benefit (The
Financial Express) The government has decided
to issue certificates to small garment makers,
allowing them to export to south Asian
countries at lower duty, a senior official said.
According to the existing export policy, Export
Promotion Bureau (EPB) under the ministry of
commerce issues SAFTA certificates only to the
member factories of BGMEA and BKMEA. SAFTA
certificates allow exporters to get duty benefits
while shipping products in eight south Asian
countries. The EPB, at a recent meeting, has
decided to issue such certificates in favour of
smaller apparel makers, helping them to foray
into the neighbouring countries, where demand
of low-cost Bangladeshi garment items is
growing.
New authority planned to police textile mills
(The Financial Express) The government has
planned to create a new 'sponsoring' authority
to oversee the country's textile mills, making it
mandatory for them to be registered with it, a
senior ministry official said. This provision has
been incorporated into the 'Textile Industry Act
2015', already drafted by the ministry of textiles
and jute. All the existing textile units, according
to the proposed law, will also require getting
registered with the authorities for obtaining
support from the government and other trade
bodies including financial institutions. If a textile
factory fails to get enlistment from the
sponsoring authority, it will not be allowed to
work with the enlisted one under subcontracting arrangement, the draft act said.
Oil, Gas & Energy
Tender floated amid growing concern (The
Daily Star) A tender has been floated for
constructing the 1,320 megawatt Rampal plant
near the Sundarbans amid concerns from the
UNESCO and environmentalists over the power
plant's possible harmful effects on the forest, a
Unesco world heritage site. Environmentalists
have long been protesting against the
construction of the massive coal-fired power
Newsflash March 2015
plant in Bagerhat, as the location of the
Bangladesh-India joint venture project is only
14km off the world's largest mangrove forest.
The UNESCO wrote to Bangladesh government
in November last year, voicing its worries over
the world heritage site. In response, the
government sent a letter to the Unesco last
month, saying the project wouldn't harm the
Sundarbans as the site is 14 km from the edge
of the forest, said an official wishing anonymity.
Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company
Ltd (BIFPCL), which is implementing the project,
floated tender last month for constructing two
units of the plant. It set May 18 as the last date
for submission of bid papers.
Water/Maritime
Danish company keen to invest in Payra port
project (BD News) Mogens Jensen, Danish
Minister for trade and development
cooperation said Danish companies were
interested in investing in Bangladesh during his
visit in March. He mentioned two that wanted
to participate in the New Mooring Terminal in
Chittagong, the Payra port in Patuakhali, and a
100-MW power plant. The PM’s Press
Secretary, AKM Shameem Chowdhuri, told
journalists after the meeting that ‘AP Moller
Terminals’ was ready to invest in the new
mooring terminal project on a ‘public-privatepartnership’ basis. The same firm was also
eager to invest in a ‘government-togovernment’model for the Payra port, he said.
Another company, Vestas, had begun moves to
reach an agreement with Bangladesh's power
division for a 100-MW power plant.
Agriculture/Fisheries
Solidaridad Partners with BRAC Dairy to
Increase the Productivity of the Smallholders
Dairy Business (EKN) Solidaridad - through the
SaFaL project funded by EKN - is working to
develop business models for increasing the
farm productivity of smallholders in southwest
Bangladesh. The SaFaL project is investing in
smallholders’ sustainable farm productivity
through a shift from self-subsistence to a more
business oriented approach for better
functioning of the value chains connecting
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farmers
to
input
and
output
markets.
Solidaridad signed a MoU with BRAC Dairy to
enhance the productivity of dairy cows of
17,000 poor and smallholder farmers. Under
this partnership, Solidaridad and BRAC Dairy will
work together to strengthen the milk supply
chain and to increase access to quality dairy
farm management services through one stop
service point. The cooperation will also focus on
knowledge and capacity building of farmers for
developing dairy hub in the southwest
Bangladesh. The inclusive milk supply chain will
benefit 17,000 smallholder farmers (80% of
them are women) to have price incentive of
around 15% through their engagement in the
milk supply chain. Other than the 17,000
farmers, additional 200 poor people will find
their income and employment in the supply
chain.
Agro-processing has 'potential' to emulate
RMG success (The Financial Express) The agroprocessing sector in the country has the
potential to create a large market like that of
readymade garments (RMG) at home and
abroad if necessary help from the government
is ensured. Speakers made the observation at
the inaugural session of a day-long training on
improvement of production in small and
medium agro-processing industries of the
members of Bangladesh Agro-Processors'
Association (BAPA) in the city on March 28. In
his address, the chief guest, Senior Vice
President of BAPA, said the training was a
timely step. “The agro-processing suffers from
lack of skills, experience and appropriate
technology. The sector has the potentials like
that of RMG. If the government increases its
supports for us and if we can ensure quality of
products the sector can expand markets at
home and abroad," he observed.
Vietnam shows interest to invest in farm
sector (The Financial Express) Vietnam said it
would scale up imports of Bangladeshi
Newsflash March 2015
medicines and showed its interest to invest in
Bangladesh's
agriculture
sector.
The
commitment came at a meeting between
Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and the
visiting Vietnamese Vice- Minister for Trade and
Industries Hoang Quaoc Vuong at the ministry
of commerce (MoC) at Bangladesh Secretariat
on the day. Bangladesh and Vietnam have been
maintaining good relations. Both the countries
are members of the Asian Trade Promotion
Forum (ATPF), facilitating both countries for
transactions of their mutual trade. Bangladesh
mainly exports pharmaceutical products, raw
hides and skin, fish, edible vegetables, coffee,
tea, mats and spices, tobacco and
manufactured tobacco substitutes. The country
imports salt, sulphur, earths and stone,
plastering materials, lime and cement, manmade filaments, iron and steel and fertiliser.
Processed chicken market to heat up (The
Daily Star) The soaring demand for easy and
hygienically-prepared foods among the urban
middle class is pulling in large investors to the
processed chicken and ready-to-cook frozen
foods sector, industry operators said. Local
poultry giant Kazi Farms recently entered the
segment to grab a pie of the Tk 150-crore
market that is growing by more than 20 percent
a year. Pran, a processed food conglomerate,
and Abdul Monem Ltd, an infrastructure
contractor and ice cream giant, are also queuing
up to make a foray. Russian team to inspect
pest-free potato exports (The Daily Star) A team
from Russia is likely to call in Bangladesh in the
second week of April to assess the country's
capacity of controlling plant diseases and
exporting disease-free potato, said a senior
official of the agriculture ministry.
Study on strawberry export potential soon
(The Financial Express) Strawberry, farming of
which began in the country, on non-commercial
purposes, has the potential to be added to the
export basket,
according
to
sector insiders.
Farming of the
juicy
fruit,
popular
in
different parts
of the globe,
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has been gaining momentum in the Rangpur
and Rajshahi region and other areas of in the
country because of its easier cultivation
process, lower land requirement and
maintaining better profit margin, said sector
insiders. Businesses are now eyeing export the
fruit, which will be added as a new product to
the export basket.
Contract farming to be made compulsory for
betel leaf export to EU (The Daily Star) The
government is set to enforce contract farming
arrangement to ensure export of safe betel
leaves to the European Union, an official of the
agriculture ministry said. The move comes with
a view to convincing the EU to lift a ban on
betel leaves from Bangladesh, enforced in
February last year after repeated detections of
bacterial contamination in consignments
shipped from the country. Priority will be given
to shipment of betel leaves grown on contract
farming arrangements, said Anwar Faruque,
director general of the agriculture ministry's
seed wing.
Other news
Bangladesh, Myanmar plan preferential pact
to boost trade (The Financial Express)
Bangladesh and Myanmar are considering
signing preferential trade agreement in a move
officials say could take both-way commerce to a
new high. The Bangladesh Tariff Commission
recently carried out a study on the prospect of
such an accord between the two neighbouring
countries and submitted it to the ministry of
commerce.
Singapore, KL show interest to sign FTAs with
Dhaka (The Financial Express) Singapore and
Malaysia showed interest to sign free trade
agreements (FTAs) with Bangladesh to 'create a
win-win situation for trade and investment for
each country'. Officials said the issue of the FTA
is likely to be figured prominently in separate
meetings scheduled for April in Malaysia and
Singapore as the two southeast Asian countries
have shown interest to discuss it, among others.
The Bangladesh-Malaysian Joint Commission
meeting is expected to be held in the first week
of April in Kuala Lumpur where the foreign
ministers of both the countries will lead their
Newsflash March 2015
respective delegations. The Foreign Office
consultation (FoC) meeting of Bangladesh and
Singapore has been fixed on April 6 focussing on
trade and investment including a free trade
agreement. The Foreign Secretaries of both the
countries will lead the FoC.
Solar solution for Jhenidah farmers (The Daily
Star) There is no power in the village, but an
initiative by a farmers' cooperative has boosted
their hopes of bumper crop yields in the
vicinity. Two solar pumps have put smiles on
growers' faces as they can now irrigate paddy
fields at much lower costs. The pumps, first of
their kind in Jhenidah, have been collected by
local NGO Action in Development (AID) as a
donation from Infrastructure Development
Company Limited (IDCOL) and set up in a field
of Hardevpur village under Kaliganj upazila. The
two units use 80 solar panels, each producing
230 watts of electricity. The project has been
supplying 14 lakh litres of water to 50 bigha
land every day since January 15. Some 100
farmers are benefiting from the Tk 75 lakh
scheme.
Lending made mandatory for women
entrepreneurs
(The
Financial
Express)
Bangladesh Bank has announced a fresh
scheme for mandatory lending to women
entrepreneurs to expedite the financial
inclusion process in Bangladesh's economic
advances. Under the initiative, all commercial
banks and non-banking financial institutions
(NBFIs) will have to provide a minimum Tk
50,000 as loan to at least a woman
entrepreneur per annum. A total of 9228
branches of all banks and NBFIs will lend to the
women entrepreneurs across the country.
Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Dr Atiur
Rahman declared the scheme while addressing
an exchange-of-views meeting between
bankers' and SME women entrepreneurs in
Cox's Bazar on March 26, according to a central
bank statement.
PHP to assemble Proton cars locally (The Daily
Star) PHP, a Chittagong-based industrial giant, is
set to assemble Malaysian Proton cars in
Bangladesh, with plans to make parts and
components as well in future. Initially, 1,200
sedans will be assembled annually at its factory,
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currently being built on 30
acres of land in Chittagong's
Anwara upazila for Tk 400
crore. Called the 'Proton
PHP', the car will be
commercially launched by the
year-end. The deal was signed on
March 12 in the Malaysian city of Selangor.
BoI to sponsor road shows abroad to boost
investors' confidence (The Financial Express)
The Board of Investment (BoI) has taken a
number of initiatives including road shows and
business meets with foreign entrepreneurs to
boost their confidence, officials said. The road
shows in England, the Netherlands and France
would be held in the third week of March while
the similar programme would be arranged in
Japan in the third week of April. A number of
delegations
including
member
from
government officials and private entrepreneurs
will leave Dhaka soon to attend the
programmes.
Telenor aims to go big on mobile financial
services (The Daily Star) Telenor Group, which
owns the majority stakes in Grameenphone, is
eyeing a stronger footing in Bangladesh's
mobile financial services
landscape in its quest to
become a regional market
leader in this field. “We
have an ambition to become the market leader
in Asia in mobile financial services,” Tine
Wollebekk, Telenor's head of financial services,
said on the sidelines of the Mobile World
Congress that ended in Barcelona on March 5.
Telenor believes mobile financial services can
act as a catalyst in helping connect the large
unbanked population across much of the
developing world. “Our vision is not merely
aimed at making money by boosting financial
inclusion, but serving poor people as part of
corporate social responsibility.”
BoI offers more services online for investors
(The Financial Express) The Board of
Investment (BOI) introduced on full automation
of the Visa Support Services, Work Permit and
Setting up of liaison offices aiming to help
investors in getting more quality, faster and
coordinated services. The BOI has been
Newsflash March 2015
streamlining its investment promotion strategy
since 2010 to provide fast-track services to the
investors. At present, only registration is done
online. But all other jobs are done manually and
it takes time as some cumbersome procedures
follow. The Industries Minister said he expected
a record $ 2.0 billion (200 crore) FDI (Foreign
Direct Investment) in the country in FY2015.
BoI to sponsor road shows abroad to boost
investors' confidence (The Daily Star) The
Board of Investment (BoI) has taken a number
of initiatives including road shows and business
meets with foreign entrepreneurs to boost their
confidence, officials said. The road shows in
England, the Netherlands and France would be
held in the third week of March while the
similar programme would be arranged in Japan
in the third week of April. A number of
delegations
including
member
from
government officials and private entrepreneurs
will leave Dhaka soon to attend the
programmes.
Investment in handicraft doubles in five years
(The Financial Express) The local handicraft
industry
has
made
significant
improvement
over the years
despite having
some
impediments
including absence of proper policy and others
logistic support. According to sector insiders,
the total investment in the sector has doubled
to Tk 60 billion in the last five years as many
entrepreneurs mainly women are gradually
getting engaged in business. The investment is
around Tk 20-30 billion only in local boutique or
fashion houses. The handicraft industry's annual
turnover is now estimated to be Tk 15 billion.
The sector has contributed to employment
generation of nearly 5.0 million people, where
80 per cent are women.
the country's largest private EPZ in Anwara
upazila. The trouble began on February 21 after
more than 200 miscreants stormed into the
premises of KEPZ, uprooted its boundary pillars
and erected new ones to take control of around
six acres of land, its officials said. The KEPZ
authorities wrote to the Prime Minister's Office
that oversees the EPZs, seeking immediate
action.
Adhesive making industry growing at 20pc rate
(The Financial Express) Adhesive manufacturing
industry in the country has been growing at a
20 per cent rate annually over the last few years
thanks to the expansion of shoe, plywood,
furniture, packaging and many other gumconsuming industries in the country. "The size
of the industry has been doubled from Tk 1.5
billion to Tk 3.0 billion in five years only,"
according to the president of Bangladesh
Adhesive Manufacturers Association (BAMA).
Some of the leading business conglomerates
including Berger Paints, Pran Group and Partex
Group have joined 100 per cent raw materials
import-based industry in last two years noticing
the prospect, according to the association. The
association, established six years back, now has
36 members starting from handful ones only.
Land grabbers target KEPZ (The Daily Star)
Some influential people have grabbed a portion
of Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ) in
Chittagong, halting the development work of
the zone. The incident has created tension in
7
Newsflash March 2015
Events
BANGLADESH DENIM EXPO is an International Denim
Trade Show, which will takes place twice a year in Dhaka
- Bangladesh. The exhibition is a new comprehensive
showcase of the entire Denim value chain: fabric,
finishes, washes, accessories. The next one will be held
from 11 to 12 May 2015. For more information, please
visit: http://www.bangladeshdenimexpo.com/
Tenders
Invitation for International Tender Bangladesh Railway under Ministry of Railway issued a tender
for Renovation of Sheds, drainage system, roads, sinking deep tube-wells & installation of water tanks
etc. of Pahartali Workshop Electrical Works. Tender was published on 16-Mar-2015 and closing on 30Apr-2015 at 12:00pm. For details, please contact: Md. Harun-ar-Rashid, Chief Mechanical Engineer
(East) & Project Director, Bangladesh Railway, Central Railway Building (CRB), Chittagong,
Bangladesh. Phone: 031-2863154 Email: cmee@railway.gov.bd
Invitation for International Tender Power Grid Company of Bangladesh under Power Division
issued a tender for Procurement of Plant Design, Supply and Installation of Package 6: HathazariSikalbaha 230KV Transmission Line and Hathazari-Rampur 230KV Transmission Line on Turnkey
Basis.. Tender was published on 08-Mar-2015 and closing on 19-Apr-2015 at 11:00 am. For details,
please contact: Md. Ashraf Hossain, Company Secretary, Power Grid Company of Bangladesh Ltd. The
Institution of Engineers Bangladesh (IEB) Bhaban (4th Floor), 8/A Ramna, Dhaka-1000. Phone:
9550514 Ext-286, 233
Please remain updated on these
http://www.cptu.gov.bd/Notices.aspx
and
future
tenders
at
the
following
website:
More information
The Embassy always welcomes your comments on, and suggestions for the Newsflash. We also
encourage interested Dutch and Bangladeshi companies to place an article or message in our newsflash.
For more information please contact our economic department at the Embassy in Dhaka through email
dha-ea@minbuza.nl, or by phone (00882) 8822715-8.
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Newsflash March 2015