Businesses worry about economic woes

Bangladesh's business community rues economic losses stemming from a chain of hartal, blockade and industrial unrest and appeals for an immediate end to the ongoing political standoff over polls.

As the country currently remained apparently blockade-bound, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Wednesday struck a note of concern over the situation while calling for a negotiated solution.

It suggests avoiding political programmes like hartal and blockade for the sake of maintaining stability in the country's economy and mitigating public sufferings.

The apex trade body mentions that the Covid-19 situation and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war have already cast negative impacts on the country's economy.

"The cost of doing businesses has increased owing to price hike of petroleum products, dollar crunch, increased transport costs and disruption to world supply chains," the FBCCI says in a statement issued on the day, as an opposition-called three-day communications blockade passed off the second day in a string of agitations that started with October-29 foiled grand rally of the mainstream opposition BNP followed by a daylong hartal in protest.

The federative body of businesses further laments production shortfall and export difficulties due to the decrease in imports that has already casts shadows over the country's economy.

And the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas has also been compounding the present situation.

"The prevailing world situation coupled with hartal and blockade and political unrest in the country has been pushing the country's national economy toward a new state of fear," says the FBCCI in its statement.

It further alerts that exporters would face difficulties if they could not maintain shipment of their exportable goods in due time.

Also, the present political situation might cast a negative impact on the prices of essential commodities. The apex business body says the political programmes like hartal and blockade and political uncertainty have disrupted supply chains.

Besides, hartal and blockade programmes will send out a negative message to the world.

The federation reminds all concerned that around Tk 65.00-billion losses are being incurred for a single day's shutdown.

If programmes like hartal and blockade and other intolerable political courses of action continue, an emerging economy like Bangladesh will not be able to bear the brunt.

"Businessmen, entrepreneurs don't like hartal, hartal or any act of violence rather they prefer to see political stability because without it country's economic development cannot be on track," the FBCCI says on a note of caution.

It feels that due to political instability foreign entrepreneurs might lose interest in coming to invest in Bangladesh further.

Besides, the unrest will hamper industrial production, employment will be at risk and the number of loan defaulters will increase and make it difficult to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the statement of the FBCCI enumerates the specters that loom large.

The BNP and its allies have gone for what they say the final round of their movements for election, due in early January, under a neutral interim administration. The ruling government ditches such demand as unconstitutional.

In lockstep with the political troubles, there have been spells of violent protests in export-oriented garment-industrial belts around the capital, Dhaka, over labour demand for wage hike.

talhabinhabib@yahoo.com