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Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday asked businesspeople and industrialists in Bangladesh to at least pay the cost of generating and procuring electricity and gas if they want to avail an uninterrupted supply of energy.
“If you want uninterrupted electricity and gas, then you have to at least pay the production cost or procurement cost. How long will we [the government] provide subsidy?” she said.
The premier made this comment while inaugurating the 27th edition of the Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF)-2023, where Bangladesh-made products are on display for promotion in the international market.
The commerce ministry and Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) organised the month-long largest annual commercial and trade event at its permanent venue — the Bangabandhu Bangladesh-China Friendship Exhibition Centre — at Purbachal on the outskirts of Dhaka.
Hasina said the government cannot provide the huge subsidy on electricity and gas for an unlimited period of time as it comes from the pockets of the mass people.
“We cannot give such a huge amount of public money as subsidy, so businessmen and industrialists have to pay attention to this matter,” she added.
At the programme, the prime minister declared jute and jute products as the Product of the Year-2023.
She then said the demand for jute, which was once called the country’s golden fibre, will never end as jute products are environment friendly.
“We have been able to invent the jute genome, so we can produce so many products,” she added.
The prime minister also mentioned that jute is an all-purpose crop and every part of it — from leaves to sticks — can be used.
“So, we have to give importance to jute. We have opened up our public jute mills and anyone can lease one of them,” she said.
In this regard, she said the lessee can operate the mill directly or induct modern technology to produce diversified items.
“It [jute] can be marketed across the globe as demand for environment friendly products is increasing day by day. You [entrepreneurs] have to take that opportunity,” she added.
The prime minister went on to say that the government will introduce 5G for the 100 economic zones across the country.
“We have inducted 4G service and will surely introduce 5G, but this will be done for the 100 economic zones first as the service is not required for all areas,” she said.
She also asked all concerned to put emphasis on IT and IT enabled services.
In addition, the prime minister once again put priority on finding new markets and products for diversifying the country’s export basket.
“As our export items are limited, they have to be diversified. I am repeatedly saying that the more we will be able to diversify our products, the more we will find new markets and expand our businesses,” she said.
Hasina put emphasis on establishing food processing industries to tap into the immense potential of these items around the world.
“The demand for food items will not shrink, it will always increase,” she said.
Later, she visited various pavilions and stalls at the fair, where a documentary on the country’s overall economic development was screened.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, Textiles and Jute Minister Golam Dastagir Gazi, Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry Md Jashim Uddin and EPB Vice Chairman AHM Ahsan also spoke at the programme.
(TDS)
