Staff Reporter: 8 Japanese companies withdrew their investment from China due to the Sino-US trade war, but not a single company came to Bangladesh. However, Japan is bringing the biggest investment in Asia to Bangladesh.

Ito Naoki, Japan's ambassador to Dhaka, recently said that the investment would come directly to the special economic zone at Araihazar in Narayanganj.

Not only Japan, China is bringing huge amount of investment in Bangladesh. Yabang Investment Holdings Group, a leading Chinese company, will initially invest Tk 2,500 crore in Bangladesh. The company is taking 100 acres of land in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Industrial City for investment. Beja has recently entered into a lease agreement with the company.

In addition, 60 Chinese companies have expressed interest in investing in the Chinese Economic Zone in Anwara, Chittagong, to a Chinese company located there. A recent report by global consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) said the Corona epidemic is expected to leave China to reduce the recession, reduce spending, reduce wage costs, avoid trade wars and reduce land costs.

Sony Corporation of Japan wants to move their factory from China to another country. Due to the recent trade war between China and the United States, 6 Japanese companies withdrew their investments from China and went to countries like Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Malaysia, but not a single company came to Bangladesh.

However, after a recent courtesy call on Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, Japanese Ambassador to Dhaka Ito Naoki said the largest investment in Asia is coming from Bangladesh's 2,500 special economic zones. He said Japan has taken initiatives to increase trade and investment with Bangladesh. Besides, Japan is thinking of setting up an automobile factory in Bangladesh.

The government is establishing an economic zone for the Japanese, which has acquired 500 acres of land. This is being done by Sumitomo Corporation of Japan. The Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority (BEZA) has said that the Japanese economic zone will be suitable for factories in 2021.

Beja has also launched a one-stop service for investors with the help of JICA. In a letter to the Dhaka office of Sheikh Fazle Fahim Jetro, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), Bangladesh is keenly interested in Japan's strategy to diversify its foreign investment.

The FBCCI wants Japan to remove the factory and bring it to Bangladesh. The government is also thinking of giving additional benefits to bring the factories that have moved away from China to this country. A committee is also working in the Prime Minister's Office for this.

China's top companies will initially invest ৩০ 300 million, or Rs 2,520 crore, to set up raw materials and other chemical plants for garment production. There are plans to increase this investment to one billion dollars later.

The company will set up the industry on 100 acres of land on an annual lease basis. The agreement was signed at the Beja office on Tuesday (November 10) morning. The annual export revenue target has been set at 146.40 million US dollars. In addition, the annual internal sales target has been set at 96.70 million US dollars.

The industry set up here will provide employment to 2,200 people. Secretary to the Prime Minister's Office Md. Tofazzal Hossain Mia and Ambassador of Bangladesh to China Md. Mahbub Uz Zamani were present as the Chief Guest at the signing ceremony. Also present on the occasion was Mr. Jujiachu, Chairman, Yabang Group. Bejar Executive Chairman Pawan Chowdhury presided over the signing ceremony.

Yabang Investment Holdings Group Company Limited is a Chinese company which is basically a part of Yabang Group of China. They are one of the largest industrial enterprises in the field of dyeing and painting. The group is a listed company on the Jiangsu Stock Exchange. In addition to dyes and dyes, they have investments in pigments, pharmaceuticals, veterinary medicines, pesticides, photovoltaics, mining, logistics, finance and real estate.

Yabang Group has an annual operating income of 4.5 billion US dollars. The group is among the top 500 Chinese companies.

Bazar executive chairman Pawan Chowdhury said good days are coming in trade and investment in the country. Beja is working to maintain the continuity of foreign investment. Following this, it is communicating with various countries including Japan, India and China. China's Yabang Group is bringing in the biggest investment during the Corona disaster. This new investment will diversify the country's export market.

The government wants to increase foreign private investment under the Public Private Partnership Authority (PPPA) model. As a part of this, initiatives have been taken to check and sort the ongoing projects. The decision was taken at a recent PPP board meeting chaired by Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Ahmed Kaikaus.

The meeting was informed that several interesting and planned projects have already been made with the possibility of attracting foreign investment. For this reason, it has been suggested to be more careful before undertaking a new PPP model project. In addition, all the projects that have been listed without considering their feasibility and marketability have been asked to be screened at the meeting.