“Since Bangladesh’s inception, Nordic countries have been amongst its most crucial

development partners. Bangladesh’s stunning progress in socio-economic development was greatly supported by assistance from Nordic countries," he said.

Also read: Nordic countries want to invest more in Bangladesh

Rahman also mentioned that as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has set the

target to transform Bangladesh into a developed nation by 2041, it places the highest importance on the attraction of FDIs and diversifying export basket.

The Nordic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) in Bangladesh, in cooperation with the Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Embassy of Denmark and the Embassy of Sweden, organized a webinar on “Building a Sustainable Environment for Foreign Direct Investment: Outlook and Opportunities for Bangladesh.”

NCCI facilitated discussion on the development of overall business environment and addressed bottlenecks to attract Nordic investment in the country.

Business leaders, foreign dignitaries, government regulatory bodies, policy makers and advocacy coalitions also joined in the webinar.

Also read:Nordic countries eye stronger partnership with Bangladesh

Md. Sirazul Islam, Executive Chairman, BIDA said Bangladesh is a land of limitless opportunities.

As many as 94% respondents of a survey on Nordic businesses in Bangladesh said they are expanding their operations.

"I will urge existing Nordic investors to be our ambassadors and highlight just how profitable, comfortable and supportive Bangladesh is as an investment destination.”

Miah Rahmat Ali, Senior Private Sector Specialist of IFC, presented a keynote and

highlighted that the government of Bangladesh has taken several critical reform initiatives to build a sustainable environment for the private sector, including foreign direct investment.

Also read:Invest more economic zones, ICT, jute sectors: PM to Norway

The government may consider bold and evidence-based reform initiatives to ensure more predictability in regulatory service delivery and private sector related policy formulation and a level playing field for all businesses.

Also, Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem, Chairman, NBR, joined the event as a special guest.

NCCI President Tareq Rahman, in his welcome remarks said that the Nordic companies can largely contribute to the long-term sustainable growth of Bangladesh though FDI in infrastructure, power, healthcare, telecommunication, manufacturing and finance, with particular focus on innovation and climate sustainability.

He commended the work of the Government of Bangladesh to implement the “Digital Bangladesh” vision of the Prime Minister which will take the country forward to achieve the middle-income status by 2024.

Speaking on behalf of the Nordic Embassies in Bangladesh, the Swedish Ambassador Alex Berg von Linde said the Nordic countries remain committed to their partnership with Bangladesh to strengthen the possibilities of their companies to be agents for sustainable development in Bangladesh.

"In this regard, we especially value our good and long-standing dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh and its agencies and authorities on issues relating to the Ease of Doing Business in the country,” the ambassador said.

A panel discussion moderated by Dr. Ahsan Mansur, Executive Director, Policy Research Institute (PRI) with the Special Guests, IFC and NCCI President focused on issues limiting expansion of trade and investment in Bangladesh for Nordic businesses.

Panelists also discussed the regulatory constraints which create uncertainly and adversely affect business.

They also underscored the importance of digitization of processes which would improve the ease of doing business and create a level playing field for all actors in the market.