Sri Lanka seeks Bangladeshi investment

Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sudharshan Seneviratne has sought investment from Bangladesh in tourism and agriculture sectors of the nation, which is now going through an economic turmoil.

Seneviratne made the call in a meeting with Md Jashim Uddin, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), at the federation building in Dhaka yesterday.

The Sri Lankan envoy said his country is offering attractive incentives for foreign investors, including tax holidays. Bangladeshi entrepreneurs can make profits by investing in huge uncultivated lands in Sri Lanka, the envoy also said.

The high commissioner also sought Bangladesh's cooperation in the development of tourism and shipping sectors.

The Colombo port now has four harbours and is equipped with more modern facilities, he said and urged the Bangladeshi cargo ships to go through Colombo. Jashim Uddin said a free trade agreement between the two countries would make it easier to increase bilateral trade and investment.

He stressed the need for increasing regional trade.

Most of Bangladesh's trade takes place with the United States and the European Union, but it is more profitable to do business with the neighbouring countries, he said.

Referring to the huge volume of inter-trade in North American Free Trade Agreement and the Association of South East Asian Nations, the FBCCI president said if the South Asian Free Trade Agreement was implemented, the development of Saarc countries would have been accelerated.

He also emphasised the importance of cooperation in the energy sector among the Saarc countries.