Korean investors will find growth opportunities in Bangladesh

Salman F Rahman, private industry and investment adviser to the prime minister said that South Korea's technological superiority, vast industrial and infrastructural experiences, along with Bangladesh's sincere efforts, will create a winning combination that will prove to be beneficial for both countries.  "We hope and expect that globally renowned iconic Korean companies will come forward to take the advantage of competitive and congenial investment climate of Bangladesh," he added.

He made the remarks during a webinar styled "Bangladesh-Korea Business Corridor: Stakeholders Dialogue & Way Forward", organised by HSBC Bangladesh, in partnership with BIDA, BEZA, South Korean Embassy in Bangladesh and Bangladesh Embassy in South Korea, said a press release.

The virtual event was hosted for Korean companies, stakeholders, as well as key policy stakeholders in a bid to support Korean businesses to explore emerging business opportunities in Bangladesh. Mahbub Ur Rahman, CEO of HSBC Bangladesh, moderated a panel discussion where Rahman, along with Lee Jang-keun, the Korean ambassador to Bangladesh, Abida Islam, the Bangladeshi ambassador to Korea and Md Sirazul Islam, executive chairman of BIDA, participated and discussed on the opportunities and challenges that needs to be addressed to attract more Korean business flow in Bangladesh.

Foreign Direct Investment from Korean companies has been a driver of Bangladesh’s prosperity and growth in recent years. Further upswing in investment is expected across a variety of sectors in the years ahead, with a particular focus on infrastructure, electronics and ICT.

Salman F Rahman's touched many topics in his interview with The Business Standard

The government is extensively working to attract domestic and foreign investments. Numerous development works are especially ongoing at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar in Mirsarai, Japan Economic Zone in Araihazar and Matarbari. These economic zones are getting both local and foreign investments even amid the pandemic. This is what Salman F Rahman, Adviser to Prime Minister on Private Sector Industry and Investment, said during his interview with The Business Standard.

He further said, we talk about employment generation all the time. But I do not think the country has a high unemployment rate. For example, farmers do not get enough agro-workers during the paddy harvesting season. If there had been intensive unemployment, more workers would turn up for farm work. Even industries do not get the required skilled manpower they need. Garments and pharmaceuticals have a crisis in skilled labour. What the sectors do is they train up staffers after recruitment. Therefore, I do not think the industries, too, have any serious unemployment issues.

In the interview, Salman F Rahman touched many points related to employment. He said, our education system also needs overhauling. Universities should have collaboration with industries. Many universities have already done that, and the teamwork needs to be strengthened and institutionalised. Freelancing can be a solution for graduates who are still unemployed. The government has arranged identifications and registrations for freelancers. Many graduates are going straight for freelancing after receiving computer training. The ICT ministry offers many skill development schemes and other support to them. Issues related to opening bank accounts for freelancers have been resolved, and more and more youths are opting for the profession.

Link to the interview:
https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/job-growth-didnt-stumble-too-much-211558?fbclid=IwAR0l8zESS_cTG8yRrhV1u1ErrVKz6-_k7mvm43PkD0bkH6RR2ADoCZPJ7kY

Salman F Rahman answers hard questions

In an interview the Beximco Group’s Vice-Chairman and premier’s Private Industry and Investment Affairs Adviser Salman F Rahman attributed the prime minister’s foresightedness for early vaccine availability. In an interview the Beximco Group’s Vice-Chairman and Premier’s Private Industry and Investment Affairs Adviser Salman F Rahman attributed the prime minister’s foresightedness for early vaccine availability

Bangladesh received the first consignment of five million doses of Covishield from India earlier this week under a procurement agreement, four days after New Delhi sent as “gift” two million doses of same Oxford-AstraZeneca inoculates co-manufactured by India’s Serum Institute. The shipment was part of 30 million vaccine doses to reach the country under a tripartite agreement among Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd Serum Institute and the Bangladesh government.

In answering the question, how it has been achieved, Salman F Rahman said it was possible only because of the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s foresightedness and courage. The entire world is having issues with the availability of vaccines.

In respond to, how did Beximco get involved in the vaccine affair?, he responded, India’s Serum Institute is the world’s largest vaccine producer licensed to produce Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine for India and developing countries at an equitable price. When Beximco approached them to become their sole distributor in Bangladesh, they were reluctant. They themselves were unsure of timely delivery of vaccines. We insisted nonetheless, and they agreed to make us their sole distributor in Bangladesh under one condition. They told us since they needed to expand their production capacity, we must pay them some money in advance. We agreed and became the sole distributor accordingly. Then, we pushed for priority vaccines. Serum was then committed to providing the Indian government and GAVI or COVAX Alliance with the first batch of the vaccines. We argued since Bangladesh and India share a very close bond, we should also get vaccines on a priority basis. They said, as a private company, Serum’s responses will not be impacted by dynamics of bilateral relations. We continued insisting, nonetheless. We were aiming to secure 50 million doses at a priority basis for the government, because only 100 million doses were up for grab. We were concerned that if we missed the first lot, we will have wasted months. Due to our dogged persistence, Serum finally came up with a solution. They said they could supply five million doses per month, and up to 30 million in six months in total. However, the payment has to be made in advance. We said your vaccine was not even approved yet, and we have to pay in advance? They said if we wanted to get the vaccines on a priority basis, that was the only way. We had no other choice. I then informed the Hon’ble Prime Minister that Serum agreed to give us 30 million doses but asked to be paid in advance. She agreed to the condition immediately. That was what I referred to as her foresightedness and courage. She said Bangladesh would provide the 50% of the advanced payment now and the rest will be paid once the vaccine gets approved. Serum agreed to this condition.

Beximco becomes ‘Client of the Year’

Janata Bank named Beximco Group, one of the biggest industrial conglomerates in Bangladesh, the 'largest exporter and best customer of 2020. 

Exports by Beximco in 2020 amounted to Tk 47.13 billion, while the imports were valued at Tk 23.26 billion. The bank said in a statement that it would hand over a trophy to Beximco.

Beximco paid about Tk 4.27 billion to Janata Bank in 2020 in installments for rescheduled or restructured loans, according to the statement. The bank, on the other hand, earned a total of Tk 4.84 billion from the company in 2020.

Founded in the 1970s, the Beximco Group has operations and investments across a wide range of industries, including textiles, pharmaceuticals, PPE, ceramics, real estate development, construction, trading, marine food, information and communication technology, media, DTH, financial services and energy. Salman F Rahman and ASF Rahman had founded the Beximco Group and initially exported and imported jute, until he and his brother realized the opportunities before them if they diversify Beximco Group’s business.

Salman F Rahman noticed that Bangladesh did not have a strong healthcare and medicine infrastructure. This is where the Rahman brothers diversified their business first. Beximco Pharmaceuticals was born in 1980 as a result, and is presently an international pharmaceutical juggernaut. In 2017, Beximco Pharma’s annual revenue was recorded to be BDT15.5 billion.

The leadership of the brothers took Beximco Group to new heights. The success in pharmaceuticals motivated them to expand their operations to petroleum, banking, aviation, real estate, textiles, power generation, Information Technology, ceramics, and more. The Beximco Park is a testament to the evolution of the import-export company into a multinational conglomerate.

Owing to his rich experience of more than 45 years in the field, Salman F Rahman was appointed as Awami League’s private sector development adviser. An environment promoting business was created at that time, boosting GDP growth rate by 7.2% in 2016, and 7.1% in 2017. Before that, debt fell by 32.4% in 2015 due to the government’s bullish approach.

Salman F Rahman's vision shaping up the business sector

With his ability and vision, Salman F Rahman is transforming Bangladesh's business sector. According to a report published in Newswire, on the personal front, Salman F Rahman has been heralded as one of the leading intellectuals of his generation and he has understood that his immense corporate success gives him an equally important role to fulfill in the betterment of his people. Therefore, he has a very active participation in many philanthropic endeavors and many charities and welfare organizations receive his encouragement and support.

Salman F Rahman co-founded the BEXIMCO Group of Industries way back in 1970's with his brother when the duo left grappling with a defunct textile mill. This prompted them to look for new avenues in business and thus the BEXIMCO group came into being. After painstaking efforts which ran into many decades, the BEXIMCO Group has established itself as the leading enterprise in Bangladesh. Today the group has diversified into a huge conglomerate with services and products being developed in many sectors. The group operates in many fields ranging from Textiles to Fashion, Pharmaceuticals and what not.

Moreover, the company has exhibited top rate performance in all the various sectors of its diversification. It has the distinction of being the only company from Bangladesh to be listed on the London Stock Exchange and the various divisions provide quality services and products to the biggest companies in the world and have a list of elite clientele.

The Newswire said, Salman F Rahman is one of the prominent business personalities in Bangladesh and he has used his business acumen to take his country and people towards a bright future through his great vision and never ending quest for excellence.

China and India are competing to win Bangladesh!

China and India are competing to deliver coronavirus vaccines to Bangladesh in a diplomatic offensive carefully choreographed to expand their influence in the densely populated South Asian nation.

Last month, Bangladesh cleared the way for privately owned Chinese company Sinovac Biotech to conduct a stage three clinical trial of its CoronaVac vaccine.

Dhaka-based clinical research institute icddr,b will conduct the trial and said Wednesday that a conditional deal is in place for the vaccine to be produced locally. "If the CoronaVac vaccine is successful, it has been agreed with Sinovac that a local competent vaccine manufacturer in Bangladesh will be selected and enabled through a license from Sinovac to manufacture the vaccine in Bangladesh," icddr,b told the Nikkei Asian Review in a written response to questions.

 

The Bangladeshi government, however, is making sure not to put all its eggs in one basket. On Aug. 28 it welcomed a tie-up that ensures local company Beximco Pharmaceuticals gets prioritized vaccine supplies from the Serum Institute of India.

The battle between the two regional powers highlights the pandemic-induced geopolitical opportunity beyond traditional trade and investment offered by Bangladesh, strategically located with more than 160 million people.

While China and India are its biggest economic partners, the smaller country suffers from a chronic imbalance in trade with them. For most of the past decade, Dhaka's relations with New Delhi have deepened, reinforced by the historic support the giant neighbor extended during the 1971 war with Pakistan that led to Bangladesh's independence. But that bond has recently become strained over bilateral spats that have angered Bangladesh as well as its growing economic relationship with China.

The larger issue involves India's passage last year of its Citizenship Amendment Act to fast-track naturalization of non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. That was preceded by a program to register nationals in India's northern Assam state, fueling fears of an exodus of Muslims into Bangladesh.

China took advantage of the situation, with its state-backed companies landing big-ticket infrastructure contracts in Bangladesh, outbidding Indian companies. Most recently, a Chinese developer secured an airport terminal contract in the northeastern city of Sylhet bordering India, which caused consternation among policymakers in New Delhi.

Faiz Sobhan, senior research director at the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Dhaka, said that Bangladesh's close ties with India and China give it leverage to get either nation to supply a large quantity of vaccines at a low price. Sobhan poured water on the notion that China's aggressive vaccine diplomacy will weigh on Dhaka's bilateral ties with India, as New Delhi "too has reached out to support Bangladesh in its quest for the vaccine."

Meanwhile, Russia has also shown interest in providing its Sputnik V vaccine with Bangladeshi government support for local manufacturing, provided companies are capable of producing it, Health Minister Zahid Maleque recently told reporters.

Beximco Group produces PPE and generic copies of Bemsivir

Beximco Group, a leading business conglomerates of Bangladesh, has been exporting an affluent quantity of medical protective gear along with medicines in the wake of the global coronavirus pandemic. The company donated about 6.5 million medical gowns to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on May 25, 2020.

Moreover, Beximco's Textile and Apparel Unit has been producing around 50 million pieces of PPE per month to meet the country's demand. In this way, Beximco Group continues to thrive on coronavirus challenges. 

So far, Beximco Pharma has sold around 25,000 generic copies of Bemsivir, its version of remdesivir in Nigeria, Azerbaijan, the Philippines, Venezuela and Pakistan. Beximco Group is the only organization that produces medicines along with medical protective gear. The group has invested about 30 million dollar in their PPE unit in March. The unit is currently producing 50 million different types of protective gear, including masks and gowns. Beximco has already signed an agreement with the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to supply washable long sleeve gowns. The deal was completed through the American clothing company Hanesbrands. Beximco received an order of 20 million such products worth about 250 million in April.