Bangladesh Macro-Economic outlook in the evolving global Phenomenon
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29 Jan 2023
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12:30 pm
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The Westin Dhaka
The American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) held its monthly Luncheon meeting at the Westin Hotel, Dhaka.
Mr. Edimon Ginting, Country Director, Bangladesh – Asian Development Bank (ADB), attended the event as the Guest of Honor & Speaker and spoke on “Bangladesh Macro-Economic outlook in the evolving global Phenomenon”. President – AmCham, Mr. Syed Ershad Ahmed, Mr. Syed Mohammad Kamal, Vice President, AmCham, Mr. Scott Brandon, Political and Economic Counselor, US Embassy Dhaka were also present in the meeting.
The AmCham president, Mr. Syed Ershad Ahmed in his opening remarks said, “The world is evolving every day, we are gradually emerging towards a new progression in business as well as in other sectors with these global issues. New innovations are taking over, epidemics sometimes turned into pandemics, restructured regional synergies are introduced amidst globalization and we all nowadays have the advantage of having a know-it-all internet connection in the palm of their hand.”
Bangladesh, being a country with unique features attracted global attentions nearly more than a decade with an impressive annual GDP growth rate, despite all these unforeseen challenges in the pre-COVID era, he said. Ahmed said there are so many extraordinary stories of macro-economic success that made Bangladesh rising from the crowd of crawling neighboring nations even from this South Asia.” He said foreign direct investment and bilateral trades are playing a vital role in our economic development. Bangladesh’s export growth is still on a positive trend, remittance earning is back on track, food safety is ensured, compared to the same period of previous fiscal year.
Bangladesh’s banking sector now requires comprehensive reforms for the financial sector to become strong enough to augment a transition to an upper middle-income country by 2031, said Edimon Ginting, country director of Asian Development Bank (ADB). The South Asian country also needs to raise foreign currency inflow, develop human capital and expand the private sector’s role, he told a luncheon meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) at The Westin Dhaka.
“Comprehensive and holistic reforms in the banking sector, including an NPL (non-performing loan) resolution mechanism, are necessary,” he said. He also suggested for stronger policies and strengthening governance and regulatory oversight of banks and other financial institutions. Speaking on “Bangladesh macro-economic outlook in the evolving global phenomenon”, Ginting said for sustainable growth, Bangladesh needs to focus on climate vulnerable communities, identify specific adaptation needs and develop and implement strategies. Challenges remain in infrastructure development, so a national logistics policy and a master plan are urgent needs to realise the full potential of the sector, he said. Human capital index also needs to focus on raising human capital as advantages of low-cost labour and preferential market access may fade with the graduation from the least developed country (LDC) status, he said.
A good number of AmCham members including the Executive Committee Members, former presidents, foreign dignitaries, government bodies’ representatives, business leaders, civil society members, media representatives and other distinguished guests attended the event.
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