Highlights:
- A fair and timely election crucial for restoring stability and investor confidence
- Small and medium factories may face risks of closure after LDC graduation
- End of patent exemptions could raise medicine prices by 10 to 30 times
- Financial sector discipline must be restored
A stable government is crucial for Bangladesh to attract investment and successfully navigate the challenges of graduating from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category, said Mustafizur Rahman, distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), today (30 August).
“Our preparations for the LDC graduation must continue. To boost investment, a good election is necessary. Investors want the assurance of a stable government. Suppose a good election is held within the declared timeframe. In that case, stability will return to the country,” he said at a debate contest on “Bangladesh’s Capacity to Meet the Challenges of LDC Graduation.”
The event was organised by Debate for Democracy at the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation in the capital, said a press release.
The economist noted that large factories in the garment sector may not face much trouble, but the small and medium factories may face the risk of closures following LDC graduation.
“Since the pharmaceutical industry will no longer enjoy patent exemptions, medicine prices may rise by 10 to 30 times.”
“Since the pharmaceutical industry will no longer enjoy patent exemptions, medicine prices may rise by 10 to 30 times,” he added.
Mustafizur also said discipline must be restored in the financial sector for successful LDC graduation.
He stated that the previous government had misinformed the public by claiming that defaulted loans amounted to Tk1.22 lakh crore, when the real figure was Tk5 lakh crore.
To meet the challenges of LDC graduation, he emphasised the need to focus on enhancing competitiveness, advancing technology, improving productivity, ensuring a single-window system, reducing time at ports, and cutting lead time.
The event was chaired by Debate for Democracy Chairman Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron.
