Dubai: Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) is planning to open a regional office in the UAE to promote two-way investment and trade between Bangladesh and the GCC countries, a top official said.
“We want to engage more with large businesses of the GCC countries and explore investment and trade opportunities that will help boost our economic relations with the Gulf countries, where a large number of non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) live, work and also do business,” Sabur Khan, President of DCCI – who is heading a 14-member business delegation to the Gulf, told Gulf News.
“This year, we will create 2,000 new small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs), including a sizeable number from amongst the 8 million NRBs spread across the world,” he said. “Bangladeshi expatriates are a major focus of our overall development game plan and that’s why, we are here to tell the Bangladeshi entrepreneurs to register online with us to become a member.”
The regional office will help organise trade missions and exhibitions as well as events to promote business event that will benefit the business community of both the countries.
“In this age of globalisation, we cannot remain isolated. In this gradually integrating global village, we want to strengthen our network to create a win-win situation for all,” he stressed.
Khan was elected in December to lead the DCCI for the next two years — a period he wants to be remembered for positive changes and development as he wants to globalise its role. A pioneer in Bangladesh’s information technology sector, he took one of his companies — Daffodil Computers — to public through a record initial public offering. As a businessman, he is now focussing on spreading IT and education through Daffodil International University - one of the largest private sector institution for higher education.
The delegation, which attended the World Chambers’ Congress in Doha last week, is currently in the UAE — its final leg of a two-week Gulf-wide tour.
DCCI, which has a membership base exceeding 14,500 business houses, represents the biggest and most powerful segment in Bangladesh’s private sector.
Bangladesh’s two-way trade with UAE, Qatar and Bahrain reached $1.13 billion (Dh4.1 billion) in 2011-12 financial year ending June 30, 2012. The GCC countries are host to more than two million NRBs who collectively remit more than $8.32 billion (Dh30.56 billion) a year.
“We are also engaging with the resourceful NRB businessmen and professionals in the GCC, as part of our plan to expand our membership to successful NRB businessmen in different parts of the world,” Khan said.
The delegation has met on Monday with officials of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry — with which it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to expand collaboration. It will meet with Bangladesh Business Council members today and attend the two-day Africa Global Business Forum that starts on Wednesday.
More than 10,000 NRBs own businesses in the UAE that employ about 75,000 people, out of the 800,000 Bangladeshi expatriates that last year remitted $2.4 billion (Dh8.8 billion) to their home country. Of these, Dubai Chamber has more than 1,500 Bangladeshi-owned companies amongst its 110,000 plus registered business entities. Trade between Dubai and Bangladesh last year crossed Dh1.4 billion.
Khan said, his organisation has undertaken a major step in closing ranks with the NRB businessmen and professionals in increasing foreign investment. “NRBs are a major contributors to Bangladesh’s growing economy. In addition to providing the country with valuable foreign exchange, they are also a major source of inward investment to Bangladesh,” he said.
A number of NRBs have helped bring in foreign investment to Bangladesh. UAE’s RAK Ceramics, ETA-Star Group have already invested in Bangladesh while a large number of NRBs have already invested in Bangladeshi economy.
