Local-Business
Nisho, Mehazabien made Daraz brand ambassadors
Daraz Bangladesh has signed an agreement with actors Afran Nisho and Mehazabien Chowdhury as its brand ambassadors. This collaboration for the next two years will increase customer engagement and raise brand awareness, said a Daraz press release today. Nisho and Mehazabein are known for their talent and charming personalities. They have a massive fans following as individuals and as an on-screen couple and have been associated with numerous successful campaigns, making them the perfect choice to represent Daraz, said the release.
Read more: Daraz Bangladesh celebrates its 8th anniversary “We are thrilled to have Nisho and Mehazabein representing our brand. They are incredibly talented and have a massive fan base, which will improve how we interact with our consumers. We are optimistic that their association with Daraz will increase our brand presence and help us reach new heights,” said Daraz Chief Marketing Officer Talat Rahim.
Bangladesh RMG moving towards circularity to stay competitive
The ready-made garment industry of Bangladesh is strongly focusing on transition towards a circular economy to pursue growth in a more sustainable and stay competitive in the long run, said Faruque Hassan, President of BGMEA.
Switching to circular economy practices is a huge task that requires collective efforts from all stakeholders including the government, policy makers, development partners, brands, and suppliers, he said.
“The circular economy can build a pathway for greater environmental sustainability coupled with economic growth,” he observed.
Faruque Hassan made the remarks when speaking at a stakeholders’ roundtable on a topic titled “SWITCH to circular economy for textile value chain, Bangladesh” held in Dhaka on February 28.
SWITCH to Circular Economy Value Chains (SWITCH2CE) is an international development project co-funded by the European Union and the Government of Finland, which aims to support enterprises in the textiles and garments, plastic packaging, and ICT value chains to adopt the circular economy practices.
Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh Charles Whiteley attended the event as chief guest.
BGMEA Vice President Miran Ali, Director Barrister Vidiya Amrit Khan, President of Nordic Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bangladesh (NCCI) Tahrin Aman, UNIDO Representative Zaki Uz Zaman, Head of Material Innovation and Strategy at H&M Gagan Bansal, Chatham House representative Patrick Schroeder, and DG-WTO cell and Additional Secretary at the Ministry of Commerce Hafizur Rahman also spoke at the roundtable which was moderated by Mark Draeck, CTA, UNIDO.
In his speech as special guest, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan said the textile industry is considered one of the very polluting and resource-heavy industries and therefore it is imperative to reduce the negative environmental impacts of the industry.
He said, “While we move towards a circular economy, the skills and efficiencies of our industries have to continue to improve, to be competitive in the global marketplace.”
“The RMG industry of Bangladesh has been proactively addressing the global demand for sustainable and emission-free products. So far Bangladesh has the highest number of USGBC Certified LEED green garment factories in the world, with 192 LEED Green Factories of which 67 are platinum rated, and with 550+ factories in the process of being certified. This number is increasing,” he said.
BGMEA, Global Fashion Agenda (GFA), Reverse Resources, and P4G have already partnered in an initiative "Circular Fashion Partnership" that aims to achieve a long-term, scalable transition to a circular fashion system, he said.
Over 30 renowned fashion brands, manufacturers and recyclers are collaborating in the new initiative to capture and reuse textile waste in Bangladesh.
BGMEA for easy financing for SMEs in sustainability
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan has stressed the need for creating easily-accessible fund and due diligence for the RMG industry, especially SMEs to support in making transition towards green growth.
“The RMG industry of Bangladesh has made significant progress in the area of environmental sustainability, and we have the highest number of green garment factories in the world. Moreover, the industry has continued its efforts to pursue excellence by embracing circularity, sustainable practices and making production process cleaner and more energy efficient,” he said.
“While we are committed to make strides towards reducing the emission of the industry, accessing green finance comes as an major area of concerns, especially the SME’s are not being able to access to the available green finances avenues like GTF (Green Transformation Fund), SREUP of AFD, and upcoming GCF (Green Climate Fund).
But SMEs are mostly in need of low-cost fund as they often cannot avail regular financing schemes due to stringent due diligence," he added.
Faruque Hassan made the remarks while addressing a national dialogue on green transition organized by Oxfam in Dhaka on February 28.
Saber Hossain Chowdhury, MP, Chairman, Parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, attended the event as chief guest.
Oxfam initiated the multi-stakeholder national dialogue with relevant government, RMG owners and professionals, policy experts, energy experts, CSO’s, climate justice experts and development partners.
The key objective of the dialogue is to create a civic space that can support to find a tangible financial mechanism and just transition in the apparel sector of Bangladesh.
In his address BGMEA President Faruque Hassan said BGMEA had been working with the government and other stakeholders for capacity development of BGMEA member factories on energy efficiency and renewable energy while providing easy access to information on rooftop solar project implementation, facilitating garment industries to avail low-cost green finance, and jointly promote the industries working towards sustainability.
BGMEA announced its Sustainable Strategic Vision- 2030 to pursue the RMG industry growth in a sustainable manner, he added.
30 percent life insurance clients not getting their claims
Chairman of Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) Mohammad Zainul Bari on Monday said around 30 percent of life insurance customers are not getting their claims.
He said this while speaking at a press conference on the occasion of National Insurance Day-2023 on March 1. Other members of the IDRA were also present at the press conference.
In a written speech Zainul Bari said that in 2022, the gross premiums of the insurance sector stood at Tk 16812 crores. Out of this, the gross premiums of life insurance is Tk 11399 crore and non-life is Tk 5413 crore.
During the crisis period, the insurance sector provided greater liquidity to the banking sector of the country.
Besides, Tk1305 crores of VAT and taxes have been deposited in the treasury of the government on premiums earned by life and non-life insurance companies during 2022.
He said that IDRA is moving forward with a specific plan to achieve the goal of a developed, prosperous, smart Bangladesh by 2041 through the development of the insurance industry.
For the development of the insurance sector, the work of the Bangladesh Insurance Development Project has been started with a total cost of Tk 632 crore, including government funding of Tk 118.50 crore and World Bank Tk 513.50 crore. The project has been extended till December 31, 2023.
Read more: Meghna Life Insurance premium now through Nagad
Referring to different problems in the insurance sector, he said, the main problem of insurance is a lack of awareness and lack of literacy.
“We failed to highlight the importance of insurance in front of people. Could not adopt product selection, and policy in keeping with the time. Besides, we have failed to pay insurance claims in time,” he added.
Around 30 percent of life insurance claims are not paid. Due to these reasons, people are disappointed and mistrusted with insurance. That leaves people wondering how else to get compensation without insurance.
“We have identified these issues, which will be resolved gradually through the development of the insurance sector,” he pointed out.
Through this project, the IDRA, Bangladesh Insurance Academy, General Insurance Corporation, and Life Insurance Corporation will be further enhanced in professionalism and technical capacity, IDRA Chairman said.
Meghna Life Insurance premium now through Nagad
Customers can now pay premiums of Meghna life Insurance in the comfort of their home using Nagad, a mobile financial service of the Bangladesh Postal Department.
Besides, they can buy different insurance products through the Nagad app offered by the insurance company.
To this end, Nagad and Meghna Life Insurance Company Limited recently signed an agreement at the latter’s head office in the capital’s Motijheel area, says a press release on Monday..
Because of this partnership, the clients will easily pay monthly, quarterly, and yearly premium of Meghna Insurance Company’s different products, such as Ekok Bima (ordinary life insurance), Loko Bima (micro life insurance), and Islami Bima Takaful (Islami Shariah-based ordinary life insurance). They can also pay insurance policy renewal fees using Nagad wallet.
Read: Nagad Islamic wins 'Best Innovation in other Financial Institution' award
On behalf of Nagad, its Chief Commercial Officer Md Shihab Uddin Chowdhury, Head of Business Sales Department Mohammad Mahbub Sobhan, Deputy General Manager of FI and Insurance Md Bayezid and Key Account Manager of Business Sales Department Tapash Ahmed were present at the signing ceremony.
On the other hand, Chief Executive Officer of Meghna Life Insurance Company Limited NC Rudra, Deputy Managing Director and CFO Mohammad Tarek, Executive Vice President Saifuddin Ahmed, and Senior Vice President (Administration) Mia Md Mashiur Rahman represented Meghna Life Insurance Company at the event.
Chief Commercial Officer of Nagad Md Shihab Uddin Chowdhury said, “We are working towards bringing more and more people into the fold of digital financial transactions. In fact, Nagad also wants to come up as a complete financial solution to meet all day-to-day needs of its customers.”
“As part of our efforts to reach this goal, we have made this partnership with Meghna Life Insurance Company, which will facilitate premium payments of our customers,” he added.
Chinese company to invest $8.7 million in Ishwardi EPZ
IHM Garments and Textile Company Limited, a Chinese firm, is going to establish a garment manufacturing industry in Ishwardi EPZ with an investment of $ 8.7 million.
An agreement to this effect was signed between Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) and IHM Garments and Textile Company Limited at BEPZA Complex, in the capital on Monday.
Ali Reza Mazid, a Member (Investment Promotion) of BEPZA, and Yu Binbin, Chairman of IHM Company signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides.
The Executive Chairman of BEPZA Major General Abul Kalam Mohammad Ziaur Rahman, ndc, psc witnessed the signing ceremony.
This fully foreign-owned company will produce 2.6 million pieces of Woven Tops and 10.6 million pcs of Knit tops and Pants for Ladies, Kids, and Men annually. IHM Garments and Textile Company Limited will create employment opportunities for 2457 Bangladeshi nationals.
Islami Bank remittance clients to get motorcycles
The Islami Bank Bangladesh will give its customers motorcycles through a raffle draw on every banking day, from Sunday to Thursday, for sending cash remittances by Ria Money Transfer.
The campaign will run from March 1 to May 14 to encourage people to send remittances through the banking and legal channel, the Islami Bank said in a media statement.
Read: IBBL conducts workshop on preventing money laundering and terrorism funding
Muhammad Qaisar Ali, additional managing director of the bank, inaugurated the Islami Bank-Ria Money Transfer Remittance Fiesta as the chief guest Sunday in Dhaka.
Suhail Shamsi, business development director of Ria Money Transfer South Asia, spoke at the programme.
The Islami Bank is a joint venture public limited company engaged in commercial banking business based on Islamic Shariah. It is listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange and Chittagong Stock Exchange.
IBBL conducts workshop on preventing money laundering and terrorism funding
Dhaka East and Central Zone of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) organized a workshop on 'Prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing' for agent banking officials in the capital on Saturday.
J Q M Habibullah, FCS, Additional Managing Director of the Bank addressed the conference as chief guest while Md. Jamal Uddin Majumder, Deputy Managing Director was the special guest.
Read: 4-day international plastic fair to begin at ICCB Wednesday
Md. Maksudur Rahman, Senior Executive Vice President presided over the function while Mahmudur Rahman, Head of Dhaka Central Zone, A S M Rezaul Karim, Senior Executive Vice President, Md. Aminur Rahman, Head of Dhaka East Zone, Muhammad Golam Rabbani, and A.K.M. Mahbub Morshed, Executive Vice Presidents of the Bank, among others, spoke at the function.
Robi launches e-SIM
Robi has introduced e-SIM for its customers.
All of Robi's prepaid and postpaid customers can activate and manage Robi products and services directly from their smartphones using e-SIM, the telecom operator said in a media statement.
To avail of e-SIM, the customers will have to visit Robi Service Centre or apply online to complete the biometric verification.
Since e-SIM is virtual in nature, there is no concern of losing it, nor is there any need to open up one's smartphone to access it. Not only that, but users can also save multiple e-SIMs on their phones, and access the e-SIM they need when required.
In case the QR code of the eSIM gets deleted, users can download it as many times as needed. Robi users with e-SIM-enabled handsets can use this highly secured smart technology.
4-day international plastic fair to begin at ICCB Wednesday
A four-day international plastic fair will begin in the capital's International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) Wednesday.
The "15th International Plastic Fair 2023" will run till February 25.
Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun will inaugurate the exhibition, Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association President Shamim Ahmed said at a press conference Monday.
He said companies from 21 countries, including Bangladesh, China, Taiwan, India, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, South Korea, Belgium, Canada, the US, France, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Austria, Singapore, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirate (UAE) will showcase their products at the expo.
There is a global market of plastic goods worth $570 billion where Bangladesh's share is 0.1 percent, Shamim said. "We are working to increase our market share to 3 percent."
"Currently 5030 industries, including those in the large, medium and small categories, are engaged in the manufacturing of different products. They produce plastic goods worth Tk40,000 crore from which the government receives Tk3,500 crore as revenue," he added.