The government on Tuesday approved a proposal to import some 50,000 metric tons of non-Basmati parboiled rice through international open tender method for the current fiscal year (FY26).
The approval came from a meeting of the Advisers Council Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) held on Tuesday at the Cabinet Division Conference Room at the Secretariat with Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed in the chair.
The Food Ministry’s proposal, to be executed by the Directorate General of Food, involves a total cost of around Taka 216.90 crore, with a per-ton price of US$354.19.
The contract has been awarded to M/S Aditya Birla Global Trading (Singapore) Pte Ltd.
Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed while briefing reporters said the government has already taken initiatives to import essential commodities like rice and wheat before Ramadan to ensure stable supply.
He added that the Bangladesh Bank has become more liberal regarding the opening of Letters of Credit (LCs), which will help continue the previous policy decision aimed at keeping prices at a tolerable level during the fasting month.
The Advisers Council Committee on Economic Affairs also approved the Ministry of Food’s proposal to import three lakh metric tonnes of wheat and to shorten the procurement timeframe for another three lakh metric tonnes of rice in an effort to meet the rising domestic demand for food grains.
Dr Salehuddin told reporters that the committee reviewed and endorsed, in principle, a proposal to procure three lakh metric tonnes of wheat through international open tender under a government-to-government (G2G) process in accordance with Section 68(1) of the Public Procurement Act 2006 and Rule 99(2) of the Public Procurement Rules 2025.
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Besides, the committee approved another food procurement proposal in principle, aimed at shortening the import timeframe for three lakh metric tonnes of rice through international open tender under Rule 102(1)(Ka) of PPR 2025, considering urgent operational requirements.
The meeting also endorsed a major development initiative under the Local Government Division. The committee granted in-principle approval for the implementation of Package Number HELP/UN-1 under the World Bank and Government of Bangladesh-funded project titled “Host and FDMN Enhancement of Lives through Infrastructure Improvement Project (HELP).” Under the proposal, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) will be directly engaged as the implementing UN agency using the Direct Selection/Direct Procurement Method (DPM).