Abu Dhabi: The UAE and Bangladesh will soon sign two significant agreements as part of enhancing economic relations.
Both sides finalised an agreement on promotion and protection of investments yesterday during a meeting between a UAE delegation and a visiting Bangladeshi delegation, the Bangladeshi Ambassador to the UAE told Gulf News yesterday.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Executive Director for International Financial Relations in the UAE Ministry of Finance, and Afroza Khan, Deputy Secretary in the Bangladeshi Ministry of Industry, signed the draft agreement, Mohammad Nazmul Quaunine said.
He said both sides had finalised the second agreement a few months ago on the agreement to avoid double taxation.
Both agreements will be signed during a high level visit of Bangladeshi officials to the UAE, Quanine said.
Both parties have agreed to expedite the procedures required to sign the agreement in the presence of high level dignitaries, the ambassador said. Quanine described the development as a "milestone" in bilateral relations because the draft agreement had been pending for years.
The agreement would certainly boost the scope of investments in both countries, he said.
He said the potential investors from the UAE would enjoy a secure environment in Bangladesh following the finalisation of the agreement.
Majid Ali A Omran and Dr Hamed Nasr Abdul Qader of the UAE Ministry of Finance also represented the UAE delegation. Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Senior Assistant Secretary in the Bangladeshi Ministry of Industries and Mohammad Shahid Bakhtiar Alam, Councillor at the Bangladeshi Embassy in Abu Dhabi also took part in the negotiations.
UAE firms pump in $2.5b
The private sector companies in the UAE have invested about $2.5 billion (Dh9.18 billion) in Bangladesh, Mohammad Nazmul Quaunine, the Bangladeshi Ambassador to the UAE, told Gulf News yesterday.
Dhabi group in Abu Dhabi [in telecom and banking] and Ras Al Khaimah Ceramics are the major investors, he said.
Apart from them, many private companies have invested in construction, real estate and pharmaceutical sectors, Quaunine said.
The UAE Government does not have major investments in Bangladesh but it has granted certain loans to the country, he said. "We would like to attract investments from UAE Government companies also," the ambassador said. Two major UAE airlines - Etihad and Emirates - are flying 42 flights to Bangladesh every week, he said. "We understand that they are interested in investing in related sectors such as hotels, hospitality and food catering in Bangladesh," Quaunine said. "We hope the finalisation of the agreement [to protect investments] will encourage them."
Although Bangladeshis are the third largest expatriate community in the UAE at about 700,000, the number of investors in the community is much less, according to the ambassador.
"About 10,000 Bangladeshi investors are working in small and medium enterprises in the country," he said.
But they have concentrated in some sectors such as automobile workshops in Mussaffah in Abu Dhabi and groceries in Sharjah, he said.
Entrepreneurs inspire community
There are several Bangladeshi small and medium entrepreneurs who built up their businesses from scratch after coming to the UAE, the ambassador said.
Alam supermarkets, which have branches in Abu Dhabi and employ around 500 people, are a good example, he said. Islam Engineering, an automobile workshop employing about 300 workers in Mussaffah, is another example, Quaunine said. He called upon the community to derive inspiration from these examples and to become entrepreneurs.
Abu Dhabi
There are several Bangladeshi small and medium entrepreneurs who built up their businesses from scratches after coming to the UAE, the Bangladeshi Ambassador said.
"They came here as workers and built up the enterprises with nothing but continuous hard work. And it is inspiring that now they provide jobs to several compatriots and others," Mohammad Nazmul Quaunine said.
Alam supermarkets which have branches in Abu Dhabi and employing around 500 people are a good example, he said. Islam Engineering, an automobile work shop employing about 300 workers in Mussaffah is another example, Quaunine said. He called upon the community to derive inspiration from these examples and to become entrepreneurs. (end)
