Industries grow, planning lags

The industrial sector of Bangladesh has proved itself to be the greatest contributor to its economic development over the recent decades. The country has diversified its focus from agricultural activities towards industrial performance, and the proportion of the contribution of the industrial sector to GDP was estimated to be approximately 34 to 37 per cent for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. There exists a gap or rather a weakness in the process of industrialisation in Bangladesh.

Industrialisation has taken place in an almost unplanned and uneven way here. Factories and other industrial units have been set up wherever space is found. The impact of this kind of industrialisation is evident in the degradation of agricultural land. Given the land shortage in the country, this development has been causing concern for sustainable development in the country.

Also equally alarming is the concentration of industries in Dhaka and Chattogram. These two zones have become the centers of industrialisation, capturing investments, infrastructure development and labour market. While there are definite economic benefits that can accrue from clustering, like proximity to markets, ports and infrastructures, this trend has also led to a number of problems. Urban congestion, pollution, high cost of land use and pressure on city infrastructure are some of the hallmarks of such cities, while other areas have not received their share of developments.

In an effort to tackle the problems associated with clustering, the government decided to pursue the path of planned industrialisation by setting up Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and Special Economic Zones (SEZs). This was aimed at offering investors infrastructure facilities and a business-friendly environment to encourage investment.

It theoretically provides an opportunity to make industries decentralised and reduce the burden of development from cities such as Dhaka and Chattogram. But practically the outcome has not always been positive and many of these areas have found it difficult to meet the expected levels of investment at first. One of the major obstacles to success has been the lack of effective communication and transportation network connections between the industrial zones and the larger market and port areas.

Another barrier to industrial decentralisation is that there is no shift in the concentration of regulatory bodies and important services to other places than Dhaka. Even when there is development in other regions through industrial zones, companies face problems due to their Dhaka-centric nature.

The problems encountered by individual projects reflect these trends. For instance, the Savar Tannery Estate was conceived as a relocation of tanneries from the heavily polluted Hazaribagh, providing an organised and eco-friendly environment. Though the shift was successful, the project suffered from inefficient waste disposal and a lack of other infrastructure. Therefore, it has been unable to meet its intended goals.

This example shows that there is a consistent trend where designs are never followed up with timely implementation and coordination. Unless such issues are sorted out, the industrial zones will not realise their full potential.

What is needed is a more cohesive and proactive industrialisation strategy. The first step should be ensuring that better land-use planning takes place to avoid the arbitrary conversion of arable land into industrial sites.  The development of the necessary infrastructure to match the industrialisation and the decentralisation and digitalisation of licensing processes are also critically important.

The industrial sector of the country has certainly developed to a large extent, but the future prosperity of this sector rests largely upon how successfully it can tackle the problems it is facing.

rahmansrdk@gmail.com