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Set up industries outside Dhaka, get low-interest loan

PM asks entrepreneurs

Staff Correspondent
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said the government would disburse bank loan to the entrepreneurs at low interest rate if they set up their industries at district and upazila level to reduce the burden on Dhaka city.
She asked the entrepreneurs to take their investment out of
Dhaka so that it helps power decentralisation.
"I will ask the finance minister and Bangladesh Bank governor to provide special facilities to those who invest at district and upazila level," Hasina said this at the inauguration of the two-day long SME Financing Fair 2009 at Sonargaon Hotel as the chief guest.
Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry and SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) Foundation jointly organised the fair where a total of 26 banking and other financial institutions participated to showcase their different financial products and programmes.
Hasina asked both the public and private banks to disburse
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collateral free loan to the SME entrepreneurs and charge low interest from them.
She also asked the banks to ease the conditions of giving loan to women entrepreneurs to create more opportunities forthem.
She said the World Bank has given Tk 112.32 crore to Bangladesh including $10 million fund for re-financing the SME sector. A total of Tk 206.39 crore has been disbursed among 2,341 SME entrepreneurs from this fund through 14 banks and 14 financial institutions.
"1 have already held an important meeting with the minister and officials of the housing and public works ministry on how to expand the capital city as it has already become heavily congested," Hasinasaid.
She said the government is now planning to import power from India and Bhutan to meet the growing demand for power in the country. Hasina also said her government making a long-term plan to generate power keeping in mind the demand for it up to 2021.
She suggested entrepreneurs for using solar panels in their offices, as prime minister's office is also now using it, to reduce the burden on national power grid.
Chairperson of the SME Foundation Aftab-ul Islam and president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry Zafar Osman jointly chaired the inaugural session.
At the inaugural session Finance Minister AMA Muhith, as a special guest, said the large-scale industries of the country could provide only 12 percent of the total employment generation while the SME sector does the rest.
Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Dr Atiur Rahman said the central bank had taken a comprehensive programme to promote the SME sector and a separate department had been opened in the BB to this end.
Industries Minister Dilip Barua and Commerce Minister Faruk Khan, among others, also spoke at the inaugural session.