2024

Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Southeast University (SEU) on Wednesday, 27 November 2024, at the office of their Career and Professional Development Service (CPDS).

The MoU aims to foster a professional network to develop and promote academic and educational relationships through research, internships, professional exchanges, and policy advocacy between the two organisations. It will facilitate research and public-private dialogue (PPD) to create a transparent and conducive business environment in Bangladesh. On behalf of BUILD, Ferdaus Ara Begum, CEO of BUILD, and on behalf of SEU, Mohammad Nazmuddoza, director of CPDS, signed the MoU.

This joint initiative is focused on conducting research activities and exchanging information, including academic and policy research that will facilitate trade simplification and business improvement. The collaboration also includes organising joint seminars and research programmes to bolster industry-academia cooperation in Bangladesh. Dr Abul Hasanat Alamgir, professor and director of IRD at SEU, along with Pallab Bhattacharja, additional research director of BUILD, Kanis Fatama, senior research associate of BUILD, and Rawshon Shahriar, senior research associate of BUILD, were present at the event. The signing concluded with a tour of various departments, the library, and other infrastructural support areas of the esteemed university.

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The 9th SME Development Working Committee (SMEDWC) meeting, organised jointly by the Ministry of Industries (MoI) and BUILD, was held on 23 October 2024 in the MoI conference room. The meeting was chaired by Zakia Sultana, senior secretary of the MoI, and included the presentation of two critical policy papers: “Tannery Solid Waste Management: By-Products Development and Opportunities for SMEs” and “Revisiting the Potentials of Logistics Sub-Sectors in the IP 2022”. The objective was to gather feedback from public and private sector stakeholders.

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The 11th Trade and Investment Working Committee of BUILD, co-chaired by Md Selim Uddin, secretary, Ministry of Commerce, and Kamran T Rahman, president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), was held on 20 October at the conference room of MoC to discuss business-starting registration and licensing requirements—alternatives to cash incentives to remain competitive in the post-graduation regime.

Referring to the proposal for signing an FTA, the committee secretary, MoC, and co-chair emphasised the initiative to finalise the free trade agreement (FTA) with China, reinforcing the government’s commitment to enhancing trade relations. He emphasised the need to streamline RJSC services by reducing discretionary powers to create a more investment-friendly environment. Additionally, he urged the prompt implementation of a five-year trade licence issuance and renewal process by all relevant authorities, particularly the Union Parishad, to facilitate smoother business operations and support local enterprises. In response to the implementation report of the 10th T&I meeting presented by Ferdaus Ara Begum, CEO of BUILD, the MoC secretary requested reform suggestions to make RJSC more supportive of businesses.

While presenting the policy paper on “Local Government Act 2009 – Rationale of Trade Licence Issuance by the Authorities”, Kanis Fatama, senior research associate of BUILD, underscored the hurdles faced by entrepreneurs in Bangladesh while obtaining trade licences, including lengthy and stringent procedures with additional costs. The study reveals that local government agencies can collect taxes from all businesses under the Local Government Act 2009 (City Corporation, Municipality, and Union Parishad) rather than issue trade licences for starting a business.

Furthermore, industrial entities must obtain multiple initial registrations, licences, and approvals beyond sector-specific licences, complicating the business environment and affecting investment readiness. To streamline the process, BUILD recommends the introduction of an online primary business registration for all types of businesses, which can be issued by a single authority, following the example of Singapore.

Anwar Pasha, joint secretary and administrator of the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce & Industry, proposed the establishment of a working group that includes all relevant stakeholders chaired by the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) secretary. This working group would review the proposals from the BUILD study aimed at simplifying the trade licence process and introducing a unified system for issuing trade licences through a single authority. Endorsing this proposal, Md Shamsul Hoque, joint secretary of the Local Government Division, emphasised the importance of facilitating initial business registration from a single point and establishing a revenue-sharing mechanism among the respective agencies.

BUILD CEO Ferdaus Ara Begum shared insights from a study on “Export Growth Targets & Supportive Policies for Sustenance at the Post-LDC Regime”, where the prospects regarding alternatives to cash incentives were raised. After LDC graduation, Bangladesh’s trade policy needs to be WTO compliant; thus, giving direct cash incentives to exporters will no longer be possible. Bangladesh Bank has already reduced the cash subsidy twice, once in February and again in June 2024, negatively impacting several export items. The presentation highlighted the nature of prohibited subsidies, actionable subsidies, and other subsidies per WTO guidelines. Examples of countervailing measures in different countries were provided, as well as allowable supports such as loans and land at cheaper rates, tax benefits, support for items in the green box as per WTO guidelines, insurance, research and development, environmental protection, and the creation of new markets and products. Giving examples of other countries providing production-linked incentives, the study suggested simplification of the duty drawback system, specially bonded warehouses, interest rate subsidies, EDF, back-to-back L/C for all exports, exporters’ retention quota, infrastructural and compliance-related supports as alternatives to cash incentives.

Ibnul Wara, a member of LFMEAB, and Mostofa Monwar Bhuiyan, director of BKMEA, urged the government to continue cash incentive benefits until LDC graduation as they focus on building capacity for compliance and related challenges. Kamran T. Rahman, president of MCCI, endorsed the recommendations and called for a study to suggest policies for increasing the use of green and renewable energy (RE) by the industries, particularly exporters, to ensure that Bangladesh achieves 40% electricity consumption from RE by 2030 and reaches net zero by 2050. He proposed that a corporate purchase framework could be a viable option to provide factories with RE through the national grid. Dr Mostafa Abid Khan, CM-1, SSGP, ERD, emphasised the issue of fees and tax and enquired how tax is imposed on licence fees. At the same time, he recommended that registration should not be renewed yearly. Md Anwar Hossain, vice chairman of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), informed that the export policy for 2024–27 has already been gazetted, allowing businesses to take advantage of its benefits. Additionally, Nurul Islam, CEO of BTA, highlighted the importance of adopting technology to enhance compliance, suggesting that the Green Transformation Fund could be utilised for this purpose. The secretary general of DCCI, Afsarul Arifeen, emphasised the coordination among all concerned government agencies and stakeholders. Ariful Haque, joint secretary and director general of BIDA, informed that BIDA is working to provide all support services for investors through an effective OSS. Mohammad Navid Safiullah, additional secretary of the export wing of the Ministry of Commerce, concluded the session by thanking BUILD for presenting two important policy papers. He suggested introducing a suitable app-based system to provide all services through a single authority to facilitate the private sector while advocating measures to reduce business costs to remain competitive in the post-LDC graduation stage. Anwar Hossain Chowdhury, MD of SMEF; Al Mamun Mridha, secretary general of BCCCI; and other representatives from MoC, RJSC, CBC, NBR, BTTC, BFTI, BGMEA, BSBA, LFMEAB, BAPA, BTMA, among others, spoke in the meeting.

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On 10 June 2024, Business Leading Initiative Development (BUILD) organised a stakeholder consultation on European Union circular textiles policies on trading partner countries at its conference room to identify practical measures to support Bangladesh’s textile industry in adapting to the EU’s sustainable and circular textiles strategy. In association with Chatham House and Circle Economy, supported by GIZ, Laudes Foundation, and the European Environment Bureau (EEB), BUILD has commissioned the study in this respect.

For Bangladesh, the textile industry, especially readymade garments (RMG), plays a key role in the national economy and labour market. The export of readymade garments increased by 3.67% in 2023 to USD 47.39 billion, up from USD 45.71 billion in 2022, according to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data. The EU has undertaken a strategy to promote a sustainable, circular textiles and fashion industry. Dr Patrick Schroeder, a senior research fellow in the environment and society programme at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, presented the summary of key findings and analysis of the study. The discussions focused on potential opportunities and challenges, changes to upstream trade patterns, future textile exports to the EU, and recommendations for policy development.

While delivering the keynote, Dr Patrick Schroeder said we must assess the sector’s landscape before providing feedback on potential impacts and necessary adaptations for Bangladesh’s textile industry. We must devise strategies for enhancing collaboration between EU and Bangladesh stakeholders to promote a sustainable and circular global textile sector.

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The Trustee Board of Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD), led by its Chairperson Mahbubul Alam, paid a courtesy call on Tofazzel Hossain Miah, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, on 22 April 2024 at the Prime Minister’s Office. BUILD Trustee Board Member and Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Ashraf Ahmed attended the meeting.
 
The principal secretary to the prime minister said that we need to get out of the shell of traditional engagement methods with donors and other key stakeholders and stressed public-private engagement, capital markets, and foreign direct investment. We are proud to have held several consultations with private sector players while drafting and successfully formulating the logistics policy, which needs to be branded worldwide.
 
Mahbubul Alam, who is also the President of FBCCI, said that on behalf of the BUILD Trustee Board, I have the great pleasure of conveying our heartiest congratulations to the leadership of the Prime Minister’s Office for the formulation of National Logistics Policy on 8 April 2024. He underlined implementation, demonstration and coordination as the critical parts of the policy’s success. The formulation of the National Logistics Policy was the ask of the private sector, and we stand ready to extend support for the implementation of the policy, he said.
 
He reiterated that the Prime Minister’s Office and BUILD maintain excellent relations, which is marked by more extensive engagement in private sector development for the country. BUILD is formally engaged with PMO through the Private Sector Development Policy Coordination Committee (PSDPCC), which is the only strategic public sector platform for private sector-related policy review, coordination, identification of investment barriers and fostering public-private cooperation. He also requested the date of the next PSDPCC meeting, which will be held at the end of May 2024.

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Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD), in association with the National Board of Revenue (NBR), organised a Dialogue on Customs Act 2023   on March 6, 2024, at its Conference Room at Motijheel. The dialogue focused on key provisions of customs-related issues in the Customs Act 2023. The Act included international best practices such as the WCO revised Kyoto Convention, WCO safe framework of standards and WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. The new Act has 269 clauses, which was 286 in the previous one.

Dr S. M. Humayun Kabir, Member, Customs Audit, Modernisation and International Trade, NBR, was present as the Chief Guest and said that change is a continuous trend. We are planning to hold a series of dialogues, and this will help us change our mindsets.

Having referred to some of the provisions of the new Act, such as consultations with the stakeholders before bringing any changes in the Act( section 262), AEO rules for the compliant traders, policies for voluntary disclosure( clause 171(2), release of products through self-clearance(clause 90(3), extension of time refund application ( clause 34), he said that we made these changes for simplification of procedures and better services to businesses.

Md Abdul Kafi, former Commissioner of Customs Excise and VAT, NBR, moderated the session and highlighted some critical historical perspectives of the customs issues from his long experiences of working in this area.

BUILD CEO Ferdaus Ara Begum gave an introductory speech and informed us that there is a target of USD 111 billion in exports by 2027. Customs should be modern enough to handle massive exports and imports to meet the target.

Raich Uddin Khan, First Secretary (Customs, Policy and Budget), NBR, made a presentation highlighting different new provisions such as electronic declaration, risk management, Non-Intrusive Inspection(NII), post clearance audit, advance ruling, National Enquiry Point, advanced passenger information etc. Rules, manuals, procedures, and SOPs will be prepared soon for implementation of the new Act.

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Mahbubul Alam, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), the apex trade organisation of the country and the former president of the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), has taken over as the Chairperson of the Trustee Board of the Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD) for the year 2024-25.

He succeeded Nihad Kabir, a senior advocate and a former president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI). She was the Chairperson of BUILD in 2022-23. The transition took place on 4 February 2024, as the outgoing Trustee Board (2022-23), led by Nihad Kabir, handed over the responsibilities to the new board at the 33rd Trustee Board Meeting held at the BUILD Conference Room in Motijheel, Dhaka.

The newly formed Trustee Board for 2024 includes Ashraf Ahmed, President of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), Kamran T. Rahman, President of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), Omar Hazzaz, President of The Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), Afsarul Arifeen, Secretary General of DCCI, Farooq Ahmed, Secretary General of MCCI, Engr. Mohd. Farque Ahmed, Secretary of CCCI. Ferdaus Ara Begum will serve as the Member Secretary to the Trustee Board.

Abul Kashem Khan, Director of FBCCI and the Former President of DCCI, will continue as a nominated trustee board member from the DCCI, while Saiful Islam is a nominated trustee board member from the MCCI.

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