A high-profile conference titled 'local capital market infrastructure financing conference' will be held in the city on April 28.
Arranged by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI), the conference aims to demonstrate how long-term infrastructure financing can be successfully institutionalised through developing capital market, identifying opportunities to channel institutional capital for funding infrastructure projects using the bond market and showcasing the incremental impact of local currency financing in Asia and Africa.
"Realising the unharnessed potentials of our infrastructure financing through using structured capital market, this conference is planned to demonstrate how long term local currency infrastructure financing can be established in the country," a DCCI source said.
DCCI sources said, top business leaders, researchers, academics, economists, foreign experts, policy-makers, private sector representatives and senior government officials will attend the day-long event.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will be the chief guest while private sector industry & investment adviser to the Prime Minister Salman F Rahman will be the special guest.
Industry insiders said Bangladesh is failing to realise its full growth potential due to high transaction cost, mainly, arising from inadequate and inefficient infrastructures due to insufficient investment, which is currently recorded at 3.64 per cent of GDP.
"DCCI feels that private industrial investment needs to be channeled in a way that accelerates our investment in infrastructure. From ports to roads, we have many areas that need to be upgraded from current status and therefore, local and foreign investors need to invest in infrastructure," a DCCI source told the FE.
Kazi M Aminul Islam, executive chairman of BIDA, Md Nojibur Rahman, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Abul Kalam Azad, Principal Coordinator (SDG Affairs) of PMO, Andrew Bainbridge, Chair of the Private Infrastructure Development Group Ltd, Lasitha Perera, CEO of GuarantCo, Allard Nooy, CEO of InfraCo Asia and Nishant Kumar, Regional Director at GuarantCo Singapore office will be the key speakers in different sessions.
