Bangladesh's recent economic successes need better publicity and visibility abroad, said a senior official of global financial giant Standard Chartered.
This, in turn, would help the country enhance its image and attract more foreign investments, said Beng Kim Goh, managing director and head of Commercial Banking of Standard Chartered in Singapore.
Mr. Goh, who came to Dhaka recently to attend Bangladesh-Singapore Business Forum, shared his views on Bangladesh's economy and investment scenario in an exclusive interview with the FE.
"The success stories of Bangladesh need to be brought to the world through various forms of media," he said while taking note of the country's significant economic progress in recent years.
"This country has seen a sustained period of high growth while the inflation and unemployment rate are also relatively low," Mr. Goh observed.
"There is also a good supply of labour while the country is also competitive from the cost of production perspective," he added.
"In addition, with the huge investment the government is currently making in infrastructure and economic zones, I think the momentum will continue."
The Singaporean banker, however, noted that despite such impressive run by Bangladesh in recent years, 'the world does not hear much about it from outside'.
"So, the success stories need to be brought to the world through various forms of media," he suggested.
Mr. Goh observed that platforms like 'Singapore-Bangladesh Business Forum' organised by
Singapore Business Federation and the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) is quite helpful in providing necessary exposure for Bangladesh to the global investors.
"The key takeaway from this Business Forum is that there are plenty of investment opportunities for Singaporean businesses in Bangladesh," he said.
"I really hope that this forum gets more and more targeted and industry-specific over the time."
"As a bank, we have been arranging such forums for the last seven years. We have also organised investment summits in Singapore, London and Hong Kong," said Mr Goh's Bangladeshi counterpart at the Standard Chartered Alamgir Morhsed.
"We believe that such forum gives an opportunity to the investors from Singapore and all other parts of the world to come and see Bangladesh on the ground."
"As such, we have been very active from our side in promoting Bangladesh," Mr Morshed said.
"Currently, the Singaporean government is encouraging its local businesses to go abroad," Mr. Goh said.
"Consequently, Singaporean businesses are now also eyeing South Asia and that would obviously include Bangladesh," he added.
The Standard Chartered officials also observed that Bangladesh's ongoing demographic dividend gives it additional leverage in terms of growth and investment.
"The country that is comparable to Bangladesh within the region in terms of economic growth and demographic dividend is Vietnam. Like Vietnam, Bangladesh has a young population," Mr. Goh observed.
"And this younger generation can bring a huge change in terms of consumption pattern and lifestyles in the coming years, which can ultimately garner the scopes for further investments from home and abroad."
"In Bangladesh, the number of affluent middle-class consumers is increasing by 10 to 11 per cent every year," said Mr Morshed, who is the managing director and the head of Commercial Banking in Bangladesh.
"With that kind of growth, there would be a huge demand from the consumption perspective in the coming years," he added.
The Standard Chartered officials also observed that with increased investments and trade opportunities between Bangladesh and Singapore, the volume of cross-border trade financing between the two countries is set to surge in the coming years.
"Multinational banks like the Standard Chartered are well positioned in both the countries and well integrated with the needs of the local clients from both sides," said Mr Goh.
"Therefore, we can help Singaporean businesses come to Bangladesh and also assist Bangladeshi businesses in tapping new opportunities in Singapore," he added.
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