PM chairs first Private Sector Advisory Council meeting
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman chaired the first meeting of the Private Sector Advisory Council at his Tejgaon office on Saturday morning, according to a Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) press release.
The premier formed the country’s first ever advisory council for private sector to formally facilitate business representatives to provide timely, candid and structured feedback to the highest level of the government on the business climate, investment environment and reform priorities.
The members of the Council selected by the Prime Minister are- Dr. Arif Dowla, Managing Director, ACI PLC, Syed Nasim Manzur, Managing Director, Apex Footwear Ltd, Hafizur Rahman Khan, Chairman, Runner Group, Ahsan Khan Chowdhury, Chairman and CEO, PRAN-RFL Group, Ziaur Rahman, Managing Director, Bay Group, Abdul Muktadir, Chairman and Managing Director, Incepta Group, Md Abdul Jabbar, Managing Director, DBL Group, Sohana Rouf Chowdhury, Managing Director, Rangs Group and Syed Mohammad Tanvir, Managing Director, Pacific Jeans Group.
Apart from the Council members, Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud, Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Anindya Islam Amit, Prime Minister’s Adviser Mahdi Amin and BIDA Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun joined the meeting.
According to the release, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman delivered the opening remarks during the meeting, which was followed by an open discussion among Council members covering topics related to regulatory environment, energy, human capital, taxation policies, logistics, export diversification and foreign direct investment.
The Council members appreciated the government’s initiative in establishing this forum and its openness to engage with the private sector in fostering a more open, business-friendly environment.
The Council will now consolidate a summarized proposal from the private sector, accompanied by a targeted and action-oriented plan to address immediate challenges affecting the business climate.
The Prime Minister further advised the Council to incorporate evidence-based legal, policy, and regulatory benchmarks from other countries to ensure Bangladesh remains globally competitive.
The BIDA will work as the coordinating agency from the government side, providing necessary support working with relevant ministries and government agencies to effectively drive the implementation of the proposed action plan.
BIDA Executive Chairman Ashik Chowdhury said, “The formation of the Private Sector Advisory Council is one of the key reforms proposed by BIDA to create a structured mechanism for sustained private sector input at the highest level”.
“We are grateful to the Honourable Prime Minister for taking ownership of this matter and for bringing together an accomplished group of business leaders to support Bangladesh’s reform and investment agenda,” he added.