Diversification of exports

Prime Minister's Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman F Rahman has emphasized on diversification of exports and reducing imports to stabilize the currency's depreciating trend.

He was speaking at a business luncheon meeting organized by Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry at a city hotel.

Salman said the austerity measures initiated by the government and the central bank to rein in a bullish trend of import since the beginning of the second half of last fiscal year are paying dividends as import costs have shrunk to $6 billion from over $8 billion a month. "It [imports] used to be $8 billion a month, which came down to $7 billion last month and $6 billion this month. I believe our issues will be resolved pretty soon," he said.

Salman said the prime minister took proactive initiatives to protect the economy in pandemic times and she did the same when the dollar prices began skyrocketing. "Alongside, Bangladesh Bank has taken initiatives to reduce imports at the right time." "When this government came to power, we had about 4 thousand MW capacity in electricity but now it has become 22 thousand MW which reveals our potent energy situation. Though we now have a better situation to attract the FDI and I also admit there is room for development," he says. The policies that make RMG a successful enterprise have to be replicated in other sectors," he added.

New business strategy for Biman

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has drafted a new business strategy with special focus on cutting its ticket prices for domestic routes to maximize revenue and turn itself around in the domestic airways market.

The national flag carrier has also decided to improve passenger services on different routes as per its business policies to restore its strong position in the domestic aviation market. However, the move has irked private aviation operators, who claim the new move will push private airlines into competing on an unhealthy and uneven field, as Biman’s ticket prices would be reduced through using subsidies from the government.

In a recent letter to Prime Minister's Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman Fazlur Rahman, the Aviation Operators Association of Bangladesh (AOAB) said eight private airlines have invested thousands of crores in the industry, but many were forced to shut down their operations as they could not survive in the face of Biman's business strategy. Biman Bangladesh Airlines has drafted a new business strategy with a special focus on cutting its ticket price for domestic routes to maximize revenue and turn around its position in the domestic airways market. The national flag carrier has also decided to improve passenger services on different routes as per its business policies, to reinstate its strong position in the domestic aviation market.