The government has formed separate committees in divisional, district and upazila levels to create favourable atmosphere for attracting and assisting local and foreign investments. The Cabinet Division issued order forming the committees keeping divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners and upazila nirbahi officers as conveners in their respective fields.
The Cabinet Division has also prepared a number of plans to make the committees successful. Related officials are hopeful that implementation of the plans would bring about a radical positive change in the investment scenario. Improving the investment scenario all across the country is one of the 10 initiatives personally taken by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Under the initiative, expansion and embellishment of investment situation unto grassroots level is being stressed through forming the ‘Committee for assistance in improving investment scenario in divisional, district and upazila levels’. According to the Cabinet Division order, the committees would arrange one or more than one meetings in every three months to discuss what to do to improve investment situation.
Separate budget of Tk 15,000, Tk 13,000 and Tk 9,000 respectively for divisional, district and upazila levels have been allotted. The order instructs officials concerned to attach the web link of Development Authority to all the divisional, district and upazila web portals. It also instructs to open a front desk at all the DC offices for providing assistance to investors, and appointing one official as the focal point to supervise and improve overall investment scenario in respective areas.
The order also instructs the committees to send regular reports and recommendations to concerned authorities over how to improve the situation amending existing regulations, rules and polices, or if needed, what new rules or polices should be formulated to accelerate the investments. The order suggests forming the committees with local eminent entrepreneurs, members of local chamber of commerce and business organisations, teachers, researchers, and officials of investment development authority of the government.
As per the Cabinet Division order, the committee would have to send proposals to concerned authority suggesting necessary steps after mentioning potential areas and sectors for investment; would take initiatives to inspire and encourage new investors propagating facilities and incentives for investment; would create atmosphere favourable for new investments; and would communicate with the central bank and other related office for collecting venture capital for new investors.
The committees would also act as facilitators to establish communication between angel investors and potential entrepreneurs, especially woman and young ones. The division instructs the committees to stop the unexpected influence of middlemen; to arrange regular meetings between entrepreneurs and service providing government bodies simplify investment procedures; and to send proposals to government mentioning recommendations to pave way to establish suppliers and linkage industries for high-tech heavy industries.
