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Two-day international confce ends

Reforms must be sustained to attract investments

By Staff Correspondent
The Ivyo day International . Investment conference concluded in the capital yesterday with a broad, projection of the Investment opportunities available in Bangladesh and a message to carry forward Ihc ongoing economic reforms which have already produced good results
"I am quite happy and satisfied at the outcome of th^ conference.' said Finance Minister M Satfur Rahman at a press briefing on the outcome of the Bangladesh Investment Conference which began on Tuesday
The deliberations at the conference were of a high standard with the foreign delegates showing a keen depth of Interest to review, assess and evaluate the investment opportunities in Bangladesh." lie said.
Some 879 delegates.«in eluding 255 from 23 different countries, attended the conference. jointly organised by the Board of Investment (BOI) and Euromoney, a leading London li,>scd tinaucial Journal
h was sponsored J-V 20 local and foreign companies.
Hie objective of the conference will lx- gradually re alined In due course." said llie finance minister while noting that the attendance of such a large number of foreign dele gates In Itself was "a mantles tatlon of the interest of the International Investors'
Senior government policy-makers and leading private sector representatives ot the country highlighted various rspects of the economic reform measures and the In vestment opportunities at the plenary sessions and workshops of the conference. the first such international meet tp lie held In Bangladesh
The participants represent nig international companies. Including UBS Securities (East Asia) Ltd. Smith New Court Ear East Ltd. Global Emerging Markets. City Bank NA and Crosby Capital Markels (Asia) Ltd also made presentations on the Bangladesh e< oriomv and other, related international financing issues
Acknowledging the positive macro-economic fundamentals In the country, the foreign participants were upbeat about the country's potential to attract direct and indirect' foreign investment, but pointed out that‘the ongoing reform measures must id continued to realise the potential.
Describing the conference as extremely successful' at the concluding session. Richard Ensor, the managing director of Euromoney Publications, said "My advice to the gov-rnimfnl Is to move forward as f ist as possible with the liberalisation programme, particularly privatisation and legal reform. to keep attracting foreign Investment in a competitive environment."
Later, at the press briefing, the finance minister reassured the potential investors about the government s commitment ro (he reform programme to make the economy more outward oriented and investment friendly.
Our commitment to reform Is total, reforms will continue. II won t be stojiped. he said. "The government is fully committed to creating the most hospitable and enabling Investment climate," Salfur siiid.
Responding to a question. Salfur Rahman, however, acknowledged that the pace of reform has slowed down recently and attributed it to the prevailing political unrest and some resistance to the reform measdres.
The pace of reform Is determined by the political scenario prevailing In the coun- • try." he said white referring to the current political impasse.
Reform also has some inbuilt resistance: there- are many vested interests."
However, he assured that the slowdown was only temporary. It doesn't mean that the reform train has stopped My commitment is total and reform will continue."
The Rnance minister ac , knowtedged the need for reforming the public enterprises. the labour market, the adminfstrative and the legal sectors.
The finance minister also
agreed with a' questioner that there Is an existing gap between policy formulation and Implementation, saying the Implementation of reform measures Is difficult In a democratic Set-up.
However, he pointed out that the government s project Implementation capacity has Improved In recent years. "We are Improving our Implemen tatlon capacity, but much more improvement is needed."
Saying that Bangladesh offers the most ideal grounds for investment- In this region. Sulfur Rahman urged Interna Ilona) Investors to come for ward With foreign direct In-vesimenl (FDI) In the country.
The government is more Interested In attracting direct investment, he said, as it creates employment and produces goods and services and in turn reduces poverty. Reduction of poverty Is the ultimate success of our development activities.
He also urged the non-resident Bangladeshis living abroad to come forward with investments In the country. We are looking towards you. We will provide you with full support. Including funding
suppcjrl. even without colhtl-eral. lie promised
Impressed by the success of the conference, the finance minister announced the holding of a similar conference on attracting FDI to Bangladesh next year and requested the BOI and Euromoney to organ Ise It.
The Euromoney managing director readily agreed to the proposal.
The press briefing was also attended by M Morshed Khan. Special Envoy to the Prime Minister, and BO) Executive Chairman M Mokammel Haque
Pointing to the success of the conference and the poten tial to attract foreign Invest meat In the country. Morshed Khan, however, emphasised the need for a harmonious ap^ proach In implementing the reform programme "We have our acts together." he
Noting the tremendous en thuslasm shown by the foreign delegates st the conference. Mokammel Ijaque said that It would go a tong way In project Ing the Investment opportunl tie* available In Bangladesh