United News of Bangladesh

The release of the fourth tranche of Bangladesh’s $4.7 billion budget support loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been deferred until March, primarily due to scheduling adjustments caused by natural disasters. A senior official at Bangladesh Bank (BB) told to UNB that the matter was initially set for discussion in the IMF executive board meeting on February 5. But the meeting has been postponed, with the new date set for March 12. The IMF's month-long closure of activities, prompted by natural disasters, is cited as the main reason behind the change in the schedule. The global lender has emphasised several conditions tied to the loan's release. One critical demand is the liberalisation of the US dollar exchange rate, which the central bank is reportedly aligning with market trends. US delegation with focus on workers' rights visits BGMEA Another major point of contention relates to revenue collection targets set for the National Board of Revenue (NBR). While IMF officials have raised concerns regarding these targets, an NBR source has stated that measures to enhance revenue collection are already underway and there are no significant hurdles from their side. The fourth tranche, amounting to $645 million, follows three previous installments under the loan program. BFIU prepares to recover Tk 15,000 crore from seized accounts Meanwhile, Bangladesh has requested an increase of $750 million in the overall $4.7 billion package. The IMF has agreed to this request but has set strict conditions, including increased revenue collection and structural changes like separating tax collection from policy-making.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has invited Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus to attend the World Governments Summit 2025 which will be held in Dubai in February. Chairperson of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, UAE Sheikha Latifa Bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum extended the invitation to Dr Yunus during a bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in the Swiss city, CA's Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder told UNB. CA Dr Yunus begins hectic 2nd day in Davos with 14 meetings lined up The World Governments Summit is scheduled to take place from February 11 to 13 this year. Dr Yunus has also been requested to take three young advisers of the interim government to accompany him during the Summit so that they can share with the global audience how they led the July uprising against fallen Sheikh Hasina. Both sides highlighted the potential of young people in leading the world. "We want to build a new Bangladesh," Dr Yunus said.

Summit Group has urged the Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation(Petrobangla) to reconsider a notice to terminate the country’s third Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (“FSRU”), know as LNG Terminal, project. In a press release, it said any delay in the project implementation, for which Summit has already invested approximately USD 20 million, could result in further energy insecurity in Bangladesh and the termination notice is invalid. It mentioned that Summit LNG Terminal II Co. Ltd. (SLNG-II), a Dhaka subsidiary of Singapore-based Summit Power International Limited (SPIL), wrote to Petrobangla to raise its objections to the notice. Petrobangla and the Bangladesh Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources on 14 January 2025 issued a letter notifying that certain conditions under the Terminal Use Agreement (TUA) signed earlier with SLNG-II had purportedly not been fulfilled and as such the TUA is terminated. SLNG-II had signed the TUA and implementation agreement (IA) for the 3rd FSRU on 30 March 2024 with Petrobangla and the Government of Bangladesh respectively. The TUA and IA were legally vetted and approved by the Cabinet Committee on 12 December 2023. The 3rd FSRU, the second such project in Bangladesh undertaken by Summit Group, has a planned regasification capacity of 600 million standard cubic feet per day, which would require investment of about USD 550 million coming in as foreign direct investment (FDI). However, on 7 October 2024, Petrobangla notified that the project in southeast Bangladesh would be terminated. Since then, Summit Group has obtained legal advice from both local and international legal firms which affirmed that such termination is invalid pursuant to the terms of the TUA. Based on such advice, Summit Group engaged with Petrobangla and the Government of Bangladesh to reconsider the decision. Petrobangla’s notice of 14 January 2025 states that the decision to terminate was on the basis that a performance bond (PB) for the project was not submitted by SLNG-II but by its local parent, SCL; that the submission of the PB did not comply with an agreed template; and that the PB was not submitted within a 90-day stipulated deadline. In response, Summit Group said, the SPIL, citing advice from renowned law firms Herbert Smith Freehills of Singapore and Dr Kamal Hossain & Associates, said Petrobangla had earlier acknowledged receipt of the PB submitted in the form of a bank guarantee, which does not provide any less security.  

A Jahsore court on Wednesday sentenced former Awami League MP Shahin Chakladar to four years of jail in a case filed by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) around 16 years back. Judge of Jashore Special and Session Judge Court SM Nurul Islam also fined him Tk 20, 000 and ordered to confiscate his properties worth Tk 38 lakh and 3685. The court issued a warrant for his arrest , said district unit of Awami League law affairs secretary Advocate Gazi Abdul Kadir who stood for the former lawmaker. On March 30 in 2008, the then deputy director of the ACC (Jashore office) Manjur Morshed filed a case against Shahin Chakladar, current general secretary of the district unit of Awami League, on charge of concealing information of properties worth Tk 38 lakh. The ACC found inconsistency between the tax file and submitted statement of properties. Read: Khaleda, Tarique acquitted in Zia Orphanage graft case In the statement of properties, the former MP mentioned that he had properties worth Tk 1 crore, 96 lakh and 21400, with a loan of Tk 1 crore, 91 lakh and 515. But the ACC found the actual value of his properties was Tk 56 lakh and 26,200 and he concealed information properties worth Tk 38 lakh and 383, 685. On January 5 in 2009, the ACC submitted chargesheet against him.

A suspected motorbike lifter was killed in a lynch-mob attack at Amgaon in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon district on Wednesday. The deceased was identified as Rubel Islam, 34, son of Khalulur Rahman of Ranisankail upazila. Quoting local people, Zakaria Mandal, Officer-in-Charge of Haripur Police Station, said local people caught Rubel red handed at Zadurani Bazar while he was fleeing with a motorbike allegedly stolen from the area around 10:30 am. One killed in road crash in Khulna Later, he was taken to Garuhati Bazar where local people beat him up mercilessly after hanging him with a tree, leaving him dead on the spot. On information, police recovered the body and sent it to Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy.

The Traffic Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) filed 1,973 cases against offenders on charge of violating traffic rules on the city streets. During the drives, 44 vehicles were dumped, and 39 others towed. The cases were filed by the eight traffic Divisions under the DMP on Tuesday, aiming to bring traffic discipline in the capital, said Deputy Commissioner (DC-media) of DMP Talebur Rahman. Read: DMP files 2,004 cases for traffic rules violations The DMP's Traffic Division said that such drives would remain continued to ensure road safety.

The Election Commission (EC) is focusing on the upcoming national parliamentary election rather than the local government polls, said Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud on Wednesday. The commissioner came up with the remark while speaking at a meeting with the official concerned of the Barishal Election Commission over the voter list upgradation. “Question has been raised about the election credibility. The commission is determined to restore confidence by delivering a free, fair and credible election to the people. We are progressing with this goal keeping this in mind,” he said. BNP leader urges interim govt to quickly arrange election Mentioning that a total of 35,000 data collectors are working across the country on the voter list update, the commissioner urged them to act with greater responsibility and sought cooperation from everyone to ensure the process's success. Barishal regional election officer Md. Anisur Rahman presided over the meeting while district election officer Wahiduzzaman and other election officials from various levels in the Barishal region were present there. Main goal is to ensure free, fair election: EC Sanaullah

The three-day 19th Cairo Int’l Leather and Shoes Fair 2025 will begin in Cairo, Egypt on Thursday. The event will take place from January 23-25, 2025 at Cairo International Convention Center, Egypt where Bangladesh will be represented at Pavilion A52, said a press release issued on Wednesday. Leading Bangladeshi leather, footwear and leather goods companies such A.S Leather, Loretta Leather, Al Madina, Gardenia Footwear and Nobabee Footware will be participating in the premier international leather and accessories exhibition.  Dhaka Int’l Trade Fair: Families flock to Purbachal venue despite distance This Meet Bangladesh Sourcing Show (MBS) is introduced by Export Competitiveness for Jobs (EC4J) Project under the ministry of commerce to showcase the eminent leather, footwear (leather and non-leather) and leather goods sector of Bangladesh.  The primary objective of the EC4J project is to strengthen export market linkages for potential leather and footwear sectors by showcasing Bangladesh as a credible sourcing destination.  BGMEA chief stresses fair pricing for industry sustainability Bangladesh is a lucrative destination for the global buyer community having competitive workforce boosting exports, having duty-free market access to developed countries, being an established sourcing destination and by having availability of linkage industries.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has decided to investigate officials related to the 11th National Election. The Commission had received complaints regarding election manipulation during the 11th National Election, and a five-member team had been formed to investigate these complaints, ACC Director General (Prevention) Akhtar Hossain told reporters at a briefing held at the ACC headquarters on Wednesday. The investigation team, formed by the Commission, will specifically examine the actions of officers from the administration, the Election Commission, and the police, he added. Akhtar also said that allegations had been made regarding abuse of power, criminal misconduct, fraud, voting at night during the 2018 National Election, and the election of Members of Parliament through financial transactions. BFIU prepares to recover Tk 15,000 crore from seized accounts In the 2018 National Election, various irregularities, such as voting at night, ballot fraud, vote counts exceeding 90% in some centres, extensive financial transactions, and the use of power to influence winning candidates, were reported in the media. Some complaints had also been submitted to the ACC. The allegations were made under the leadership of then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina, the President of the Awami League, and under the overall management of Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader. The accusations also implicated leaders and activists from the Awami League at various levels, including officials from the government such as former IGP Javed Patwary, former DMP Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia, former RAB DG Benazir Ahmed, former IGP Shahidul Haque, former PM’s Security adviser Major Gen (retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique, HT Imam, and several other officials related to the election. ACC sues ex-secy Kabir Bin Anwar, his wife and ex-minister Shahid The investigation team will submit a report after reviewing various videos, news broadcasts from domestic and foreign media, election results, conducting seat inspections, and completing other necessary activities.

The government has initiated measures to send 18,000 workers, who were unable to travel to Malaysia within the stipulated time despite holding visas, by March and April, said Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Secretary Ruhul Amin on Wednesday. “If the Malaysian government says they will take workers within 15 days, we will also send them within 15 days. Now everything depends on Malaysia,” he said while talking to the reporters at the Secretariat. Asked about the ‘long process’, he said, "We hope that the way the talk is going on, it will not take too long. We hope to be able to fix everything in February. We can start sending workers in March-April.” Demonstration of stranded workers halts traffic for 3 hrs at Karwan Bazar The current government recently formed a committee and two meetings have taken place, yielding some progress, he said. Replying to a question about the method of the process, Ruhul Amin said, “We hope to have another meeting at the end of February. We have been given all the information we need to give. They also shared their information with us. The way they approached us, they accepted a lot of things in principle. But everything is not finalised yet.” Ruhul Amin went on to say, “We have made proposals, which they will approve after a ministry-level discussion. Then, the final process will begin. However, they agreed with us. The process will continue step by step.” Earlier, in the day, vehicular movement at Karwanbazar remained suspended for nearly three hours as a group of stranded migrant workers staged demonstrations demanding government steps to ensure their return to Malaysia. FDI Attraction: MoFA wants missions abroad to work out strategies The workers were supposed to travel to Malaysia through recruiting agencies on May 31, 2024 but due to ticket complications they were unable to travel. On October 5, 2024, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul said that Malaysia has agreed to receive 18,000 Bangladeshi workers who previously missed the deadline to enter the country.