Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday asked the business community to take necessary preparations for the possible challenges they will face due to the graduation of Bangladesh as a developing country.

“We may face many challenges here. But we’re always ready to face the challenges… We, the Awami League government, have taken the preparations. I would like to ask the business community to take preparations properly,” she said.

The Prime Minister said this while inaugurating the 16-day gala celebration, arranged by the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee of the country’s independence.

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She virtually opened the grand celebration programme at the Amphitheatre adjacent to Hatirjheel, from her official residence Ganobhaban in the evening.

Sheikh Hasina said now Bangladesh has won the status of a developing country. “As a developing country, we’ll get many scopes to take the country forward further,” she said.

Describing the AL government as a business-friendly one, she said her government has not come to do business but creates all sorts of scopes for the business community to expand businesses and thus generate jobs for the socioeconomic development of people.

The Prime Minister asked the businesspeople to take income-generating programmes in their respective areas to change the fate of rural people by increasing their financial and purchasing capacities.

“You might be born in a village or studied in a rural school. To change the fate of people, take some programmes alongside the government’s ones in your respective areas so that their financial and purchasing capacities go up,” she said, pointing at the businesspeople.

The business community will ultimately be benefited as their businesses and the market of their products will expand due to the rise in the purchasing capacity of people, said Hasina.

In collaboration with Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), the country’s apex business body arranged the celebration programme, titled “50 Years of Independence-Grand Celebration of Red and Green (the two colours of the National Flag).”

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PM’s Adviser Salman F Rahman and DNCC Mayor Atiqul Islam also spoke at the function presided over by FBCCI President Md Jashim Uddin.

During the 16-day gala celebrations, there will be fireworks, different cultural events, presentation of regional folk songs and Nazrul and Rabindra songs by noted singers, performances by distinguished dancers and programmes for women and children.

The 16-day celebration programme will start at the Amphitheatre after 7:00pm every day till December 16, which is open to the public.