Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) has signed 56.33 million US dollar new investment agreement with seven companies during Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
Among them, five companies are foreign owned by South Korea, Sri Lanka and China as well as two companies from host country Bangladesh, says a media release.
Presently the whole world has become almost stagnant for coronavirus (COvid-19) pandemic. During this time BEPZA has tried its best to keep moving the economy of the country as well as ensuring the production of the EPZs uninterrupted by maintaining social distance, said the release.
BEPZA instructed and monitored the enterprises of EPZs to maintain health hygiene rules strictly from the beginning of the pandemic.
Besides following EPZ Labour Act strictly, BEPZA also ensured timely payment of the wages, bonus, dues and other benefits of the EPZs’ workers without terminating workers illegally during this time.
The enterprises of EPZs has maintained health protection, hand washing and sanitizing arrangement, medical facilities, disinfection tunnel in the factory, restriction of visitors’ entry inside the zones, safe working environment as per the directions of BEPZA.
Besides producing traditional items, some enterprises of EPZs started producing Personal Protective Equipment’s (PPE) with the demand of time with full safety and security. These healthcare products have been used in the country and also exported in abroad.
The operating enterprises of eight EPZs under BEPZA exported goods worth of $3913.14 million during January-August, 2020. The actual investment stood $169.91 million in those enterprises during this time.