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A group of foreign investors have toured the special economic zone (SEZ) in Narayanganj's Araihazar, inspecting the facilities and assessing the working environment.
During Tuesday's visit, Swedish company Nilörn signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the zone authorities to set up a factory in the SEZ, according to the Chief Advisor’s Office (CAO).
The visit was part of the ongoing four-day Investment Summit in Dhaka, launched on Monday with the goal of restoring investor confidence in Bangladesh’s changing economic climate.
Thirty-six investors visited the Araihazar SEZ to evaluate on-site investment opportunities, reports bdnews24.com.
The main venue of the summit, the InterContinental Dhaka hotel, also hosted a special event titled “Startup Connect”, joined by nearly 1,500 startups across the country.
According to the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), over 1,500 investors from 40 countries have registered for the four-day summit. On the first day, around 70 investors and venture capitalists from 25 countries interacted directly with young entrepreneurs.
At the Startup Connect event, Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur announced plans to establish an equity investment fund worth Tk 8–9 billion, to be managed through commercial banks. He said a notice outlining the fund’s rollout would be issued shortly.
In addition, the central bank is planning to set up another Tk 4 billion fund to provide loans for new ventures, he said.
Chief Advisor’s Special Assistant Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb also announced that pharmaceutical company Incepta had pledged $1 million in funding for startups, to be provided as equity and loans.
Explaining the importance of taking investors to projects outside Dhaka, BIDA Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun said during the opening day briefing: “After these site visits, investors will gain confidence. As I’ve said before, investment decisions don’t happen in a day. They’re considering Bangladesh—that’s why they’re here.”
“I don’t expect them to go back and sign deals tomorrow. But they’ll return with a positive impression and tell their head offices, ‘I’ve visited the site, and it’s operational.’”