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Policy support, collaboration emphasised for a Net Zero Smart Bangladesh
Experts have emphasised policy support and public sector collaboration to ensure a "Net Zero Smart Bangladesh" in future.
"Policy support, and public and private sector collaboration are the keys to creating a Net Zero Smart Bangladesh, an expert said at a roundtable titled "Creating a Net Zero Smart Bangladesh" held today at the BRAC Center on Monday.
Robi Axiata Limited and CSR Window jointly organized the roundtable to raise awareness on the need to pursue the Smart Bangladesh vision on a Net Zero emission basis.
Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis’s Energy and Climate Specialist, Shafiqul Alam presented the keynote at the roundtable.
CSR and Sustainability expert Mohiuddin Babar moderated the roundtable. Robi’s Executive Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Communications, Anamika Bhakta gave the welcome speech.
While unveiling Robi’s Sustainability Report, Robi’s Vice President, Public Affairs and Sustainability, Sharif Shah Jamal Raz informed the audience that Robi is currently working towards a Net Zero vision by 2050. Along the way, Robi will cut its emissions by 45% within 2030.
Highlighting the progress made towards the Net Zero vision, Raz said: "As of now, Robi is powering around 13% of its network sites with solar energy. With a total of 2,127 solar powered network sites, total installed capacity increased by nearly 50% between 2020 and 2022. This resulted in an almost 25% increase in solar power-based energy production. Besides relying on solar power, Robi is also aggressively pursuing tree plantations to offset its carbon emissions."
Speaking at the roundtable, the Chairman (Senior Secretary) of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission, Shyam Sunder Sikder, said: "We should not wait for 2050 as stipulated by the United Nations, rather, we should aim to achieve Net Zero targets within 2041, when we will achieve our Smart Bangladesh vision. I commend Robi for declaring its Net Zero vision."
"I am very encouraged to see them already making significant progress towards their vision by adopting solar energy to power more than 2,000 of their network towers. We need the public and private sectors to collaborate to deliver the Smart Bangladesh vision on Net Zero basis."
Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority’s (SREDA) Chairman Munira Sultana highlighted SREDA’s contribution to ensuring a net zero vision.
"We need to approach the Net Zero vision on a step-by-step basis. You will be happy to know that we have reduced electricity consumption at SREDA by more than 40% by taking simple measures," she said.
Deputy Director (Climate Change and International Conventions), Department of Environment, Mahmud Hossain, Environmentalist and CEO, Green Savers, Ahsan Rony, Chairman, Forum for Energy Reporters Bangladesh, Md Shamim Jahangir, President, Telecom and Technology Reporters’ Network Bangladesh (TRNB), participated in the discussions at the roundtable as panel members, among others.
Mahbubul Alam takes charge as FBCCI president
Mahbubul Alam has officially taken charge as the President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), the apex trade organisation of the country.
The transition took place on Monday as the outgoing Board of Directors (2021-23), led by Md. Jashim Uddin, handed over the responsibilities to the new board at the FBCCI Icon, said a press release.
Vice President of the outgoing board and Vice President of Bangladesh Textbook Printing and Marketing Association Md. Amin Helaly took charge as the Senior Vice-President of the new board.
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Khairul Huda Chopol, president of Sunamganj Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mohammad Anwar Sadat Sarker, president of Gazipur Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Joshoda Jibon Deb Nath, president of Bangladesh Chamber of Industry, have taken over as vice presidents from the chamber group.
Shomi Kaiser, President of the E-Commerce Association of Bangladesh, Rashadul Hossain Chowdhury (Ronni), President of the Meiji Association of Bangladesh, and Md. Munir Hossain, President of the Exporters Association of Bangladesh took charge as the Vice Presidents from the association group, added the release.
The new President expressed his commitment to bolster the trade and business of the country in the upcoming days. 'Our collective efforts will drive the growth of the private sector. I urge everyone's collaboration in this journey. As of today, we stand united, We will work together to foster economic growth and safeguard the private sector, he added.
Read: Large defaulted loans have distressed domestic economy: Experts
He expressed his plan in opening a branch office in Old Dhaka. He shared his plan to set up a world trade centre in Dhaka.
Mahbubul Alam expressed several action plans of the new board for the upcoming days. Among them, forming a 21-member advisory committee which will include renowned economists, and chartered accountants, fostering the initiative for a smart web portal bringing all chamber associations under FBCCI, at least one standing committee meeting every three months.
The outgoing President Md. Jashim Uddin said, "We've dedicated the past two years to elevating FBCCI to new horizons. Our strategic policy initiatives have propelled the business community and the private sector forward. I believe the incoming board will maintain this momentum."
The new Senior Vice President of FBCCI Md. Amin Helaly, outgoing Senior Vice President Mostofa Azad Chowdhury Babu also spoke on the occasion.
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A total of 80 directors were elected for the 2023-25 Board, 40 each from the Chamber and the Association group. One president, One senior vice-president, and six vice-presidents are elected as office bearers among the Board of Directors.
Large defaulted loans have distressed domestic economy: Experts
Bangladesh Bank (BB) has arranged and published different types of loan defaulted data together as per the IMF’s prescription, which economists have termed as a real picture of the distressed domestic economy.
Eminent economists told UNB that the report disclosed the real condition of the country’s banking sector, and it will help investors and depositors make their future decisions.
According to the BB’s Financial Stability Report-2022, published on Sunday, banking sector's total risky loans amounted to Tk 3.78 lakh crore last year.
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The amount has been revealed by calculating the total non-performing loans (NPL), outstanding rescheduled loans and outstanding restructured written-off loans.
At the end of 2022, the banking sector's NPL stood at Tk 120,649 crore, outstanding rescheduled loans Tk 212,780 crore and outstanding written-off loans Tk 44,493 crore.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) termed all these loans as none performing loans. The BB has published the report due to requirement of the global lender as it fulfills the condition of $4.7 billion in loan for Bangladesh.
The IMF has conditioned its loan approval for Bangladesh to bring down the non-performing loans to 10 percent. The IMF favours rescheduling loans and court-suspended loans as default loans.
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Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Distinguished Fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), told UNB that the large amount of none performance is creating overwhelming pressure on the domestic economy as a large portion of money is stuck in unproductive sectors.
New entrepreneurs and small and medium industries are struggling for fund, where banks can invest more money if they got the loan money back on time, he said.
He appreciated the higher recovery rate of agriculture loans, where farmers are very concerned to repay their loan money after harvesting the crops, and they do not argue or search way to be defaulters.
Ahsan H. Mansoor, Executive Director of research organisation Policy Research Institute (PRI) and former economist of the IMF told UNB: "Rescheduled loans are also defaulted loans as the IMF said so.”
If taken as rescheduled loans, the rate of the defaulted loans in the banking sector will stand at 25 percent while the IMF has advised to keep such loan at 10 percent.
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“I saw in the report that the rate of rescheduling is 14.4 percent. And according to calculations given by the central bank, the average default rate is a little less than 10 percent. Apart from this, another Tk1.0 lakh crore is stuck because of pending court cases,” he added.
According to the report of the BB, in 2022, TK65321 crore of debt has been written off from the financial report. Till 2021 it was Tk60498 crore.
Most defaulted loans were rescheduled in 2022. Tk63,719 crore was rescheduled this year, which was Tk26, 810 crore in 2021. And in 2020 it was Tk19,810 crore.
In 2019, the amount of the rescheduled loans was Tk 52,370 crore. Seventy-one percent of the rescheduled loans are from the private sector banks while 24 percent from public sector banks.
ADB provides $490 million to Bangladesh for 2 projects
Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing a loan of USD $490 million to implement two projects in Bangladesh.
The Economic Relation Division (ERD) and ADB on Monday signed two separate loan deals in Dhaka. Sharifa Khan, Secretary, ERD, Ministry of Finance, and Edimon Ginting, Country Director (Bangladesh Resident Mission) of ADB signed the loan agreement on behalf of their respective side.
Under the loan deals, Bangladesh will get $190 million for implementing a project on 'Rural Connectivity Improvement Project and $300 million for Urban Governance and Infrastructure Program.
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The rural connectivity improvement project-second additional financing, Project is being implemented by the Local Government Engineering Department.
The objective of the project is to improve rural connectivity through the upgradation of rural infrastructures for enabling access to productive agriculture areas: enhance rural road infrastructure to all-weather standards with climate resilience and strengthen the capacity of stakeholders through effective training.
Under the project of improving urban governance and infrastructure program, the project will be implemented by the Local Government and Engineering Department.
Also read: ADB increases support for rural roads improvement in Bangladesh
The objective of the program is to achieve planned inclusive and sustainable urbanization, better city governance, and improved infrastructure. The implementation period will be from July 2023 to June 2028.
Both the loans' repayment periods will be 25 years including a grace period of 5 years. The interest rate on Concessional loans is 2.0 percent fixed.
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GP customers to enjoy roaming services at Dhaka airport
As part of its commitment to uplifting customer experience and convenience, Grameenphone has introduced a state-of-the-art service kiosk at the departure lounge of the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to make international roaming-related services more accessible to the customers while conveying relevant information prioritizing customers’ needs till the last available touchpoint.
A launching event for the opening of this kiosk was held at the departure lounge of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport recently, said a press release.
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Mohammad Sajjad Hasib, Chief Marketing Officer, Dr. Asif Naimur Rashid, Chief Business Officer and Aulad Hossain, Head of Sales and Customer Management of Grameenphone were present at the inauguration ceremony.
It is a part of Grameenphone’s customer-first approach that enables Smart citizens in Smart Bangladesh.
While empowering customers riding on the power of technology, Grameenphone has developed this international roaming kiosk so that customers can get last minute access and activate international roaming and avail of any other service related to international roaming before flying to another destination.
With a design-wise advanced outlook, this kiosk will ensure convenience for customers leaving the country.
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International roaming as a service is something that Grameenphone is continuously working on and the customer journey has been further made convenient for our customers through this kiosk.
This initiative is a reflection of Grameenphone’s commitment to building a safe digital ecosystem that enables participation for all.
From now onwards, all customers can get any of the roaming-related services easily from this kiosk.
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To give customers more freedom and convenience, there will be service assistants to assist the outgoing customers with queries and support to make their journey hassle-free while connected.
Customers can enjoy services ranging from roaming service activation, pack purchase, service troubleshooting, etc.
"We are thrilled to present our first new service kiosk at the departure lounge at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, which reflects our commitment to always taking a 'customer first', approach, ensuring our customers are getting accessible and time-befitting digital services for a refreshing experience while they are traveling abroad," said Mohammad Sajjad Hasib, CMO, Grameenphone.
The kiosk went into operation immediately after the inauguration.
Any outgoing passenger (Grameenphone customers) can now avail of roaming activation service from this kiosk.
Roaming as a service has also been introduced in MyGP and now customers can avail this service anytime.
RMG exports: Bangladesh earned $3.95 billion in July, says BGMEA
The total RMG export during July in FY 2023-24 stood at USD 3.95 billion, up from USD 3.37 billion dollars in the same period in FY 2022-23, indicating 17.43% year-on-year growth.
RMG export earnings from woven garments in July FY 2023-24 grew by 11.54% and reached USD 1.68 billion from USD 1.51 billion in July FY 2022-23. At the same time, knitwear export grew by 22.24% year-on-year and reached USD 2.27 billion during the mentioned period, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan wrote in a letter on Sunday.
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“The growth is certainly impressive, though the global economic scenario is portraying a contrasting outlook. Though inflation has started to ease off in our major export markets and the economic indicators started stabilizing, yet import of apparel by USA and EU is showing a major downtrend. Therefore, it’s quite challenging to forecast the market and I personally think that we need to follow a cautiously optimistic approach for the rest of 2023, as apparel and overall global trade may see some dip compared to last year,” the letter reads.
HSBC named international retail bank of the year in Bangladesh
HSBC Bangladesh has been awarded as the “International Retail Bank of the Year” for the third time in a row alongside the “Best Marketing and Brand Initiative” of the year 2023.
The awards ceremony held recently at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore recognised the strengths of the Bank’s personal banking capabilities and its commitment to opening up a world of opportunity for its customers through its international connectivity.
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Since 2006, the awards programme has recognised outstanding banks that have brought customer-focused innovation and value, said a media release on Sunday.
Tanmi Haque, Head of Wealth and Personal Banking, HSBC Bangladesh, said customers are always at the centre of everything that they do at HSBC.
“We not only focus on innovation in our services but also on how we uplift the brand to our customers through marketing initiatives. This prestigious award is a testament to all our efforts, and it will keep inspiring us to go the extra mile for our customers.”
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Md. Mahbub ur Rahman, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Bangladesh said being recognised as the International Retail Bank of the year in the country for the third year in a row and as the best marketing and brand initiative of the year reiterate our strength and ability to serve our customers with excellence.
“This recognition will propel us to support our customers with their evolving international banking needs. I would like to thank our customers, regulators and industry stakeholders for their continuous support in this journey.”
HSBC was born in 1865 from one simple idea – a local bank serving international needs. HSBC Bangladesh was established in 1996.
Banks on alert to prevent cyberattacks
All commercial banks are on a state of high alert after Bangladesh Bank (BB) issued 11 instructions to all banks and financial institutions to fight cyberattacks.
The central bank on Thursday wrote to the institutions telling them what they should do to prevent cyberattacks.
Chief Executive Officer of Mutual Trust Bank Syed Mahbubur Rahman told UNB that officials of the bank are working round the clock to keep all the activities of the bank secure.
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He said after getting the central bank's instructions, MTB has taken enough measures to check the threat.
“All the deposits and other transactions are safe and secured,” said Syed Mahbub.
Selim RF Hussain, CEO of BRAC Bank, also gave a similar opinion regarding measures to prevent cyber-attacks.
An expert team is working with coordination of the government entities to avert any disaster, he said.
The BB letter stated that a group of hackers have threatened a cyber-attack in Bangladesh, with August 15 as the date of a possible attack.
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In response to the threat, the government's 'Computer Incident Response Team' (CIRT) issued a cyber-security alert.
A CIRT press release on August 7 said that cyber-attacks could disrupt operations of State Critical Information Infrastructure (CII), banks, financial institutions, healthcare, and government and private institutions. All concerned organizations are asked to take pre-preparedness to prevent small or medium cyber-attacks.
The BB has issued 11 instructions to banks and financial institutions to prevent cyber-attacks. Notable among these are 24-hour, especially outside office hours, network infrastructure should be monitored to ensure that no one is removing data. Access to various websites should be controlled to minimize cyber-attacks.
In addition, the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) latest guidelines should be followed to strengthen the security system in addition to taking various measures to detect insecure activities on the network.
CIRT offers some suggestions to ensure the infrastructure security of the concerned organizations to avoid cyber-attacks.
They are deploying firewalls to analyze incoming HTTP/HTTPS traffic and filter malicious requests and traffic patterns. Securing critical services such as DNS, NTP, and network middleboxes; validating user input.
It also asked for keeping backups of the Website; Implementing HTTPS on websites with SSL and TLS encryption. CERT is asked to report anything suspicious, including using updated technology.
Walton is industrial icon of Bangladesh: Tipu Munshi
Terming Walton an icon of the industrial sector in Bangladesh, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi said, Walton is incredibly a lighthouse in the country.
“Walton is manufacturing every product needed in the electronics sector, reducing billion-dollar import expenses, contributing to employment creation and export earnings,” he made the remarks at the inaugural ceremony of the country’s first-ever industrial expo titled ‘International Advanced Components and Technology (ATS) Expo-2023’, managed by Walton, at Hall-1 of the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) in the capital on Thursday morning.
Attending as the chief guest, the minister inaugurated the ATS Expo. Among others, Walton High-Tech Industries PLC.’s Directors S M Mahbubul Alam and Nishat Tasnim Shuchi, Managing Director and CEO Golam Murshed, BSEC Chairman Professor Shibli Robayet-Ul Islam, Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) Vice Chairman AHM Ahsan, the Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) President Mahbubul Alam, Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) President Sameer Sattar, Philippines Ambassador to Dhaka Leo Tito L. Ausan, Jr and Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh Executive Director Ahsan H. Mansur attended the event.
Read: Walton to host int’l industrial fair 'ATS Expo' on August 10
Walton High-Tech’s Director S M Mahbubul Alam presided over the opening ceremony and popular film actor and Walton’s Senior Executive Director Amin Khan moderated the program.
Walton is showcasing more than 50,000 industrial materials, components, testing labs and other services in the expo. The three-day long ATS expo will continue until August 12.
Tipu Munshi said, if Walton had not started producing electronics products, Bangladesh would have had to pay billions of dollars in import bills. Thanks to Walton’s visionary entrepreneur. People of the country can now buy essential electronics products at affordable prices. Walton has created employment opportunities for thousands of people. Employment creation is very important for the country’s economic prosperity.
The minister also said, Walton is not only saving billions of dollars import costs but also contributing to the country's export income. They set a target of bagging $10 billion export earnings by 2030. Walton will be successful in the way it is moving forward, improving and building a strong position in the global market, he hoped.
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Walton Hi-Tech Industries Director SM Mahbubul Alam said, Walton's highly trained skilled engineers are manufacturing more than 50,000 industrial materials and components through state-of-the-art machinery. These components can be used by other industries of the country. If the domestic companies use each other's manufactured components, the cost of production will be reduced as well as the growth and capacity of the domestic industry will increase greatly. If we all work together, the economic prosperity of the country will be accelerated.
Walton Hi-Tech’s MD and CEO Golam Murshed said, this is the first time in the history of Bangladesh that a single Bangladeshi brand has organized such a technology and solutions expo. If the government's policy support and people’s trust are maintained, Walton will take Bangladesh to a unique height in the world, he said.
FBCCI President Mahbubul Alam said, electronics products are now available in every village of the country. Business-friendly environment and 100% electrification were ensured across the country, Mahbubul Alam added.
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DCCI President Sameer Sattar said, Walton has emerged as a leading electrical and electronics brand manufacturing different industrial materials, components and solution products. It also serves the backward linkage sector of Bangladesh. The growth of Walton both in the local and the international market is a matter of pride and contributing to our ‘Made in Bangladesh’ identity across the globe.
Philippine Ambassador to Dhaka Leo Tito L. Ausan Jr said, Walton is expanding its business globally. The Ambassador called for the expansion of Walton's business in the Philippine market.
South Korean Company to invest $9.39 million in economic zone
South Korean company Giant BD Footwear Ltd is going to invest $ 9.39 million to set up a Shoe and Shoe Accessories manufacturing industry in BEPZA Economic Zone (BEPZA EZ).
Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) signed an agreement with the company to this effect at BEPZA Complex, Dhaka on Thursday.
Ali Reza Mazid, Member (Investment Promotion) of BEPZA and Kim Byung Jin, Chairman of Giant BD Footwear Ltd signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organizations. The Executive Chairman of BEPZA, Major General Abul Kalam Mohammad Ziaur Rahman, witnessed the signing ceremony.
This fully foreign owned company will produce annually 20 million pairs of different kinds of shoes/sandals and shoe accessories where 600 Bangladeshi nationals will get employment opportunities.
Among others, Member (Engineering) Mohammad Faruque Alam, Executive Directors Nazma Binte Alamgir, Md. Tanvir Hossain and Executive Director and Md. Khorshid Alam were present at the function.