Five more global connectivity cables

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=179340

Five more global connectivity cables

Abdullah Mamun

The government will provide licences for five more international connectivity cables — two submarine and three terrestrial — in the private sector.

The telecom ministry has recently taken the decision, as internet-based services are often disrupted with the country’s lone undersea cable, said Sunil Kanti Bose, secretary to the telecommunications ministry.

The cables will facilitate the growth of information and communication technology (ICT) and telecom sector through uninterrupted telecommunication services.

Another ministry official said the demand for bandwidth will rise in every sector in Bangladesh, which now uses 17 gigabyte of its 44 gigabyte bandwidth capacity, as the government aims to bring the whole country under fast internet connectivity.

Moreover, the Access to Information (A2I) project of the Prime Minister’s Office has initiated a move to connect the country’s 1.5 lakh to two lakh offices.

Telecom experts said the demand will also peak up when the government would issue third generation (3G) mobile licences.

Currently, Bangladesh subscribes to one submarine cable — SEMEWE-4 (South East Asia Middle East Western Europe) — without any backup support.

The new five licences would be issued under guideline prepared by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).

The licences would be issued to operators to build, operate and maintain high capacity optical fibre cable system to connect Bangladesh internationally, according to BTRC officials.

The licensees will be able to sell or lease their capacity to the International Gateway (IGW), International Internet Gateway (IIG), and International Private Leased Circuit (IPLC) users.

Monwar Hossain, managing director of Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd that handles the lone undersea cable from Cox’s Bazar to Dhaka, said the licences would be awarded on the basis of the “expression of interest” of the applicants.

Arif Al Islam, chief executive officer of Summit Communications Ltd, said, if the country is connected through terrestrial cables, the connectivity with the neighboring countries would be better.

According to the industry people, there are three terrestrial cables on India-Bangladesh boarders in Jessore, Sylhet-Comilla and Kurigram.

“We need multiple connectivity with international fibre optic cables whether it is submarine or terrestrial,” said Sumon Ahmed Subir, managing director of BDCOM, an internet service provider.

“Also, there should not be any wastage of bandwidth.”

Accessories Growth tied to RMG

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Ready Made Garments
Accessories Growth tied to RMG

Refayet Ullah Mirdha

Even for a local outfitter, making a dress is not just about taking measurements or cutting and stitching fabric. There are a lot of nitty-gritty elements that are needed to deliver a finished garment.

Large-scale manufacturers spend 50 percent on fabric and 18 percent on accessories to make a finished garment. In the readymade garments sector, the items other than fabrics are called ‘accessories’.

Accessories are as important as the fabric itself, manufacturers say. The garment accessories trade, therefore, has flourished worldwide along with the RMG sector, insiders say.

In Bangladesh, the garments sector grew rapidly over the last several years for a lower cost of production, but growth of the accessories industry crystallised later.

In the beginning, Bangladesh used to import almost all kinds of garment accessories. But as local companies thrived, dependency on imported accessories gradually subsided.

The country initially imported accessories from countries like China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and India, spending a large portion of profits.

But now, the country is almost self-sufficient in garment accessory manufacturing, as the ancillary industries blossomed and flourished here, driven by high demand.

Zippers, buttons, labels, hooks, hangers, elastic bands, thread, backboards, butterfly pins, clips, collar stays, collarbones and cartons are the major garment accessories produced in Bangladesh.

The use of high-end accessories also adds value to the garment. As a result, large manufacturers and exporters try to use sophisticated accessories to pull in better prices from international buyers.

The import of accessories declined sharply as many local companies have developed the capacity to supply, said Shamim Iqbal, chairman of KDS Accessories, a leading accessory maker.

The accessory market is dominated by multinational companies operating in Bangladesh, because in majority cases, garment buyers prefer accessories from them over the locally available items, Iqbal said.

“The buyers prefer accessories from the multinational companies on the grounds of quality, although local companies have also stepped up to meet quality standards,” he adds.

The local accessories suppliers, however, dominate the low-end RMG segment, because the low-end manufacturers cannot pay big bucks for almost the same quality of accessories just because they carry the names of global giants, he says.

KDS Accessories, a Chittagong based factory, has set a target to export accessories worth $36 million in 2011, which was $24 million for 2010. He says the group expanded its production capacity recently to meet high demand.

Many small and medium accessory industries have grown here over the years, particularly to meet high demand from low-end garment makers, said Shafiullah Chowdhury, an adviser to Bangladesh Corrugated Carton Accessories Manufacturers and Exporters Association.

Two important industries — accessories and backward linkage — have flourished in Bangladesh to support the garments sector, he says.

“The contribution of accessories exports will be to the tune of $2 billion of the $16 billion garment export figures,” he says.

Local accessory makers are going for fully automated production systems from semi-automation modes to meet demand from international buyers, he says.

In January, the association set up a laboratory to test accessories at its office, said Chowdhury. Earlier, exporters had to have various accessories tested from Hong Kong, but now they can have it done in Bangladesh, he adds.

Bangladesh could explore Japanese apparel market

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=179257

Ready Made Garments
From basic to upscale
Head of global accessory maker says Bangladesh could explore Japanese apparel market

Refayet Ullah Mirdha

Bangladesh should shift focus to heavy-duty or high-end garment items from basic products, to be more globally competitive in apparels, said a leading Japanese garment accessory maker.

“If the country does not shift focus to high-end garment items, other countries may take the lead on competition for price comparison,” says Hiroaki Nakamura, the outgoing president and chief executive of YKK Bangladesh Ltd.

Bangladesh is a lucrative place for the accessory business for the growing garments sector, he says.

Like YKK, many local factories have invested in the accessories business in Bangladesh. As a result, nearly 80 percent of the garment accessories in demand are available in the country at present, he says.

“Still, Bangladesh imports some rare and sophisticated accessories from other countries to meet demand,” Nakamura told The Daily Star recently in an interview.

YKK began production in its plant at the Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ) in 2002 and the company was registered in 2000 with Board of Investment (BoI).

Nakamura says YKK is going to expand operations in Bangladesh as demand of garment accessories is increasing with high growth in garment exports.

He says the company has already invested $40 million on the new plant inside DEPZ to produce zippers, buttons and hooks.

Construction of the new plant began in January this year, while production there will start in November, he says. A total of 1,000 workers are employed at YKK in Bangladesh, he adds.

“The company’s turnover stood at $57 million in 2010, which was only $5 million in 2002.”

“So, you can see the growth of business in Bangladesh. It is very high,” Nakamura says.

YKK is the largest single garment accessory maker worldwide. The group has operations in 71 countries,” he adds.

The company’s total turnover in Bangladesh will reach $70 million in 2011, if production starts in November of this year, he says.

On Japanese investment in Bangladesh and apparel exports to Japan, he says the arrival of Japanese investors in Bangladesh has increased over the last few years for the Japan government’s adaptation of the China plus one investment policy in 2008.

Currently, Japanese investors are shifting their investment focus in countries like Bangladesh, Cambodia, Vietnam and other nearby countries to adopt the policy.

“We are not confined to China now,” he says. Nakamura says local manufacturers could study the Japanese garments market over the last three years, because exports from Bangladesh to Japan are soaring. The local exporters could feel the pulse of the Japanese customers, he says.

Japanese customers are quality conscious, and as a result, many manufacturers do not want to tie up with the Japanese buyers, he adds.

The Japanese government was scheduled to relax the rules of origin (RoO) for knitwear products for the least developed countries (LDCs) from April 1, but it might not take place for the devastating tsunami and earthquake this month, he adds.

If the government relaxes the RoO, the export of knitwear products from Bangladesh will increase significantly as the country is a member of the LDCs.

reefat@thedailystar.net

Bapex enters new era of 3D seismic survey

http://www.daily-sun.com/?view=details&type=daily_sun_news&pub_no=169&cat_id=1&menu_id=3&news_type_id=1&index=0

Bapex enters new era of 3D seismic survey
Local engineers survey 700 sqKm areas a year at Rasidpur
Shamim Jahangir

State-owned company Bapex has entered into a new era by adopting 3-D seismic technology for the first time to explore energy and mineral resources.

Through adopting 3-D seismic survey, the officials of Bapex have set a record of 724 shots a day at Rasidpur gas field on January 29 whereas the record was about 500 plus a day by a multinational company.

The local engineers have already collected data at Rasidpur field and processing of the data is on progress, sources said.

After processing data at the field, officials will interpret those next month to confirm additional reserve of gas in the Rashidpur gas field.

Even after start of 3-D seismic survey, Bapex will require additional manpower to carry out data acquisition process more accurately, physicist Md Rafiqul Islam, a member of Bapex 3-D team told daily sun.

State minister for power and energy Muhammed Enamul Huq said the 3-D seismic survey will help find out accurate location of the gas reserve for reducing the drilling costs.

“The adaptation of the 3-D technology by local engineers would help us assess gas reserve here,” he said.

Petrobangla chairman Prof Hossain Monsur said the 3-D seismic survey is more scientific than that of 2-D survey as it helps perfectly assess the location of energy reserve.

Mortuza Ahmed Faruque, managing director of BAPEX said conducting deep drilling in state-owned gas fields would be possible if we have 3-D seismic survey system.

“We will use our own technology in the small gas fields to explore additional gas as the multinational companies are reluctant to conduct drilling in those fields,” he said.

He said the multinational companies conduct 3-D seismic surveys for three to four months a year whereas local engineers worked eight to nine months in a year.

“Foreign engineers have conducted 3-D seismic survey at 300 square kilometers (sqKm) in a year whereas the local experts conducted the survey in nearly 700 sqKm a year, he added.

Sylhet Gas Field Filed Limited is now conducting 3D seismic survey at 705 sqKm the Rashidpur, Kailash Tila and Sylhet gas fields.

The processing and interpretation of data of 325 sqKm of Rashidpur gas field will be completed by April this year while the location of the new well will be located by May next, officials said.

Besides, collection of data at 190 sqKm areas of Kailash Tila field is under process and data processing and interpretation will be completed by September this year and the location of the new well will be identified by October next, sources said.

Sylhet gas field authority is also preparing to conduct data acquisition, processing and interpretation in an area of 190 sqKm.

Bangladesh Gas Filed Company Limited (BGFCL), however, is preparing to start data acquisition at 210 sqKm of Bakharabad Gas filed on October next while 335 sqKm of Titas Gas filed on November next, Meherul Hasan, party chief of 3D seismic party, Geophysical Division of Bapex told reporters.

Earlier, total six 3-D surveys were conducted in the country by foreign engineers.

The Petrobangla invested multimillion dollars to conduct 3-D survey by foreign engineers, an official of Bapex told daily sun, adding, “By adopting the 3-D seismic survey by the local engineers the government has saved huge foreign currency.”

Govt to take foreign coalmines on lease to feed local power plants

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=130458&date=2011-03-26

Govt to take foreign coalmines on lease to feed local power plants
M Azizur Rahman

The government has entrusted the state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) to search out potential coalmines abroad, arrange their taking on lease and bring in the mineral resource for electricity generation within the country, a top government official said.

“We have started looking for coalmines abroad to explore the possibility of taking those under long-term lease agreements as we will require a large quantity of coal,” PDB Chairman ASM Alamgir Kabir told the FE Friday.

He said the government has a plan to generate around 4,500 megawatt (mw) of coal-fired electricity by 2015.

The tender evaluation of four coal-based power plants to generate around 1,900 mw of electricity is now in progress, he said.

Installation process of a 1,320mw joint venture coal-based power plant by PDB and India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has also progressed well, while a fresh tender will be floated to build another 1,320mw coal-based power plant, said the PDB chairman.

Besides, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is now at the last stage of finalising a coal sector master plan to help streamline the use of coal for domestic electricity generation.

Besides, the government has a mega plan to generate over 10,000 mw of electricity from coal-based power plants by 2021 under its ‘Vision 2021′.

Officials said the country will require over 50,000 tonnes of coal daily for electricity generation from the planned coal-based power plants from 2015 and the requirement will double by 2021.

But the country’s local coal production from the state-owned Barapukuria coalmine stands at a meagre amount of 3,000 tonnes a day and the production is also disrupted very often due to periodic workers’ unrest.

The idea of taking foreign coalmines on lease was first initiated by the Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Ltd (BCMCL) several months ago.

“In clear appreciation of the need for meeting the fast-growing demand for coal to generate electricity, we have suggested to the energy ministry to consider taking some overseas coalmines under lease arrangements, to meet the future requirements,” the managing director of the country’s loan operational coalmine in Barapukuria, Md Quamruzzaman told the FE Friday.

The BCMCL has proposed for coal outsourcing to ensure that electricity generation from the planned coal-based power plants is not hampered due to any coal shortage.

After getting the proposal, the energy ministry has taken the initiative to search out potential coalmines abroad for possible “leasing” arrangements with the PDB, which will ultimately purchase coal for electricity generation.

Officials said the government is eyeing coalmines of the Philippines, Indonesia and South Africa for taking ‘lease’.

Energy experts have endorsed the government plan about outsourcing coal supplies as a short-term solution to meet the immediate demand, especially when extraction of coal from domestic mines is facing problems.

“The government can rely on foreign coal to generate electricity up to 5,000 mw up to the maximum,” said Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) Professor Ijaz Hossain.

But to generate electricity beyond that capacity, the government will have to explore and extract the coal from the local mines, he said.

Country’s infrastructure especially, the port facility and transportation, will not make it possible to handle a heavy quantity of imported coal, he noted.

Besides, it will always be cost-effective to use local coal, he added.

The country has around 3.0 billion tonnes of coal reserves in five discovered coalmines.

Nitol-Niloy to set up joint venture poultry complex

http://www.daily-sun.com/?view=details&type=daily_sun_news&pub_no=169&cat_id=1&menu_id=3&news_type_id=1&index=1

Nitol-Niloy to set up joint venture poultry complex

Staff Correspondent

Nitol-Niloy Group will set up a poultry industry complex in the country, jointly with India’s Amrit Group of Companies, in a major move to meet the increasing demand for poultry and hatcheries.

The joint venture deal for investing around US$ 10 million was signed between the two companies at a local hotel yesterday.

Managing directors of the both sides—Abdul Musabbir Ahmed of Nitol-Niloy, and his Indian counterpart Harish Bagla inked the agreement.

Chairman of Nitol-Niloy Group Abdul Matlub Ahmad, and vice chairman Selima Matlub Ahmad were also present at the signing ceremony.

The investment plan includes feed manufacturing, breeding farm, hatchery, commercial farming and chicken processing, though it is being started with the installation of a modern feed plant in the northern part of the country. The full investment plan is likely to take two to three years.

The high-ups of the two companies said the investment will generate good nutrition at an affordable price to the common people in a hygienic way. It would also give a breakthrough to the local poultry industry, they hoped.

Amrit Group, one of the largest players in the animal feed industry, annually produces 7,00,000 tonnes of poultry, cattle and fish feed.

It will be a new move for Nitol-Niloy as they are already engaged in automobile, cement, paper, insurance and finance sectors.

Local clothing brands make their mark

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Local clothing brands make their mark

Customers shuffle through items on display at a brand store in Dhaka.

Mir Fazla Rabby

Clothing brands in Bangladesh are drawing in a wider span of consumers over the last decade as they continue to offer fashion-rich items that conform to native tastes.

The affordable pricing range of the clothes has also been a key factor for the local brands’ growing popularity, especially among the youth.

Khalid Mahmood Khan, director of Kay Kraft, an emerging local brand, said they stepped into the market to change the cliché that rich people alone dominate clothing fashion.

“We focused on serving the middle-income groups of people with fashion-rich local clothes.”

Khan said they have experienced double-digit sales growth on an average over the last decade, and that indicates the increasing popularity of the local clothes — weaved, stitched, printed and embroidered in Bangladesh.

Kay Kraft currently has 15 outlets, including a recent one in Chittagong. The fashion house is also planning to open an outlet in Montreal, Canada, to satisfy the growing number of consumers abroad.

Cat’s Eye, another clothing brand that sells mostly menswear, saw 10-15 percent sales growth on an average in the last decade, said Ashraf Uddin Shiplu, the brand’s executive director.

The fashion house produced four lakh pieces of clothes last year, he said. Now, one of the biggest clothing brands, Cats Eye’s 37-outlet network covers five district headquarters, including Chittagong, Khulna, Sylhet, Cox’s Bazar and Bogra, in addition to the capital.

Local clothing brands, like Cat’s Eye, Westecs, and Artisti, produce goods with imported fabrics. But brands like Kay Kraft, Aarong and Banglar Mela are different, as they completely depend on local fabrics.

Aarong engages some 37,000 rural artisans and handicrafts producers to produce its fabrics, according to a statement by the leading fashion house. Last year, Aarong’s consumption stood at about three million yards of hand-woven fabric.

Aarong’s sales in 2010 stood at about Tk 339.5 crore, says Q Pushpita Alam, programme manager (communications). Currently, the fashion house employs 2,113 regular people, she added.

Bangladeshi brands that import fabrics hope to go global and plan to open outlets abroad. Cat’s Eye also mulls exporting its produces, and an outlet will be opened soon in the West, said the Cat’s Eye director.

On the other hand, Banglar Mela, a fashion house that depends on local fabrics, has no intention to become an international brand, other than expanding its market in Bangladesh, said Emdad Hoque, product development designer and director of the brand.

In addition to expanding their markets, Bangladeshi clothing brands encounter various other problems, mostly associated with taxing.

Shiplu said the government increased the VAT (value-added tax) on imported fabric from 1.5 percent to 5 percent in June 2010, without any prior notice, which put them in serious trouble.

Moreover, customs duty on imported fabric is around 89 percent, he said.

“If the government allows us to buy fabrics produced by Bangladeshi names, like Beximco or Monno Fabric, we will be able to serve our clientele better.”

But according to government restrictions, the garment factories cannot sell more than about three percent of its fabric inside the country and must export the rest, he said.

The local fashion houses, to share their internal and external problems, have recently decided to form a platform — Fashion Entrepreneurs Association of Bangladesh (Fahsion Udyog in Bangla).

Khan said primarily, 56 fashion houses are members of the association. “Fashion Udyog will soon come out after the commerce ministry accepts the application submitted this month, and related modalities are finished.”

fazla.rabby@thedailystar.net

FDI inflow rises by 66.79pc in six months

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=130439&date=2011-03-25

FDI inflow rises by 66.79pc in six months

FE Report

The country’s overall FDI (foreign direct investment) inflow rose by US$ 228.58 million or 66.79 per cent, to $570.80 million during the January-June period of 2010 over the corresponding period of 2009 due mainly to significant increase of equity capital inflow, the findings of the latest survey by Bangladesh Bank (BB) showed.

The inflow of equity capital marked a 253.99 per cent increase during the January-June period 2010, despite a significant fall in reinvested earnings and intra-company loans by 14.04 per cent and 68.28 per cent respectively during the same period, said the survey report on ‘Foreign Direct Investment in Bangladesh’.

On a fiscal year-on-year basis, the total FDI inflow dropped by $47.57 million or 4.95 per cent to $913.02 million in fiscal year (FY) 2010 compared to the increase of $191.90 million or 24.96 per cent in fiscal 2009 and decrease of $24.05 million or 3.03 per cent in fiscal 2008, the BB survey revealed.

According to the survey, the reinvested earnings decreased by US$ 25.00 million or 14.04 per cent to $153.05 million during January-June, 2010 compared to the decrease of $8.84 million or 4.73 per cent over July-December, 2009 and an increase of $37.17 million or 24.83 per cent during the same period of the previous year.

Intra-company loans, the survey said, decreased by $34.62 million or 68.28 per cent to $16.08 million during January June, 20 10 compared to a decrease of $15.27 million or 23.15 per cent during the previous July-December period of the year 2009 and an increase of $43.38 million or 192.03 during the same period of the last year.

FDI inflow to non-export processing zone (EPZ) areas during January-June, 2010 stood at $501.65 million which was 87.89 per cent of the aggregate amount, the central bank report said.

In the previous corresponding period in fiscal 2009, the figure was $260.26 million and 76.05 per cent of total inflows, it revealed.

The components of FDI inflow in non-EPZ areas during January-June period of 2010 showed that equity capital, reinvested earnings and intra-company loans shared by $395.07 million, $105.08 million and $1.50 million respectively.

On the other hand, inflow of FDI in EPZ areas during January-June, 2010 amounted to $69.15 million which was 12.11 per cent of the total inflow, said the BB survey.

In the corresponding period between July and December, 2009, the amount stood at $81.96 million and 23.95 per cent of the total, it said.

The break-up components of FDI inflow to EPZ areas during January June, 2010 showed that equity capital, reinvested earnings and intra-company loans shared by $6.60 million, $47.97 million and $14.58 million respectively.

The aggregate amount of FDI inflows to non-EPZ areas increased by $241.39 million or 92.75 per cent to $501.65 million during the period under review compared to a decrease of $37.76 million or 12.67 per cent during July-December period of 2009. The amount showed a decrease of $235.21 million or 44.11 per cent during the same period of the last year.

In EPZ areas, total FDI inflows decreased by $12.81 million or 15.63 per cent to $69.15 million during January-June period of 2010 compared to the increased by $22.04 million or 36.78 per cent during the previous July-December period of 2009.

The amount was $9.50 million or 13.68 per cent down from that of the same period of the last year, the BB survey mentioned.

Giving sector-wise break-up, the BB survey said the FDI inflow to telecommunication sector marked a significant rise by $243.36 million or 240.40 per cent to $344.59 million during January-June, 2010 compared to the decrease of $47.68 million or 32.02 per cent and $281.80 million or 65.43 per cent respectively during the second half in 2009.

The inflow of FDI to textile and wearing sector also increased by $8.80 million or 11.80 per cent to $83.37 million during January-June period of 2010 compared to an increase of $15.17 million or 25.54 per cent and a decrease of $11.55 million or 16.28 per cent respectively during the corresponding period in 2009 and that of the year before that, it said.

FDI inflow to banking sector marked an increased by $2.46 million or 4.51 per cent to $57.01 million during January-June period of 2010, reflecting a decrease of $33.47 million or 38.03 per cent and an increase of $65.84 million or 296.84 per cent during the previous second-half period in 2009 and the corresponding one in 2008 respectively.

The inflow of FDI to gas & petroleum sector, however, increased by $20.07 million or 238.93 per cent to $28.47 million during January-June period of 2010 compared to a decrease of $3.49 million or 29.35 per cent and an increase of $0.29 million or 2.50 per cent respectively during the previous second-half period in 2009 and also of same period in 2008 respectively.

There was a marked downward trend about FDI inflow to power sector – showing a decline by $1.37 million or 7.18 per cent to $ 17.71 million during January-June period of 2010 compared to increases of $7.30 million or 61.97 per cent and $0.16 million or 1.38 per cent during the previous second-half of 2009 and the same corresponding period in 2008.

ICT connects farmers

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=178738

Sown & Reaped
ICT connects farmers

L-R: A farmer harvests strawberries at his field in Saidpur. Ruhul Amin wears headphones to watch a documentary on optimal farming practices at AICC, Pirgachha, Rangpur. Photo: Sohel Parvez

Sohel Parvez

Golap Barman sprayed thousands of taka worth of pesticide but saw the condition of his green chilli plants continued to deteriorate.

The rattled farmer sought advice from his experienced peers and the extension workers. But it was all useless.

However, Barman did not give in.

As a last resort, he plucked out a diseased green chilli plant and set off for the Agriculture Information and Communication Centre (AICC) at his village market to visit an agriculturist, via video conferencing.

At AICC, a young man named Masudur Rahman adjusted the webcam, helping Barman to show the diseased plant to the agriculturist who was sitting at the Dhaka head office of Agriculture Information Service (AIS).

Upon inspection, the agriculturist prescribed Barman to use sulpher on the field. Barman did so accordingly. Within four days, his green chilli plants started recovering.

“It was great respite for me. I had invested Tk 50,000 on these green chilli plants and was worrying about counting losses due to crop failure,” said Barman, sitting at his backyard in the village of Purbadebu, Pirgachha, Rangpur, more than 300 kilometres north of Dhaka.

Barman is one of the few lucky farmers among millions in Bangladesh who benefitted from information technology in crop cultivation.

Many of his neighbours are also now aware of the services at AICC in Nek Mamud bazaar of the village, a place where very few people had the skills to operate a computer.

But some enthusiastic farmers, especially young and middle-aged literates, have learnt the techniques to running computers, browsing websites, downloading farm production technology content and video conferencing.

It has been more than three years that many farmers at AICC, run by a farmers’ group named Purbadebu Maddhapara IPM Club, get information suggestions on modern production technology from experts.

AICC was established under a government initiative to provide information quickly to farmers in rural areas, where the internet penetration rate is much lower than the national average of 7 percent.

Under the initiative, the government with support from donors has established 20 AICCs by providing computers, webcams, printers and other devices for free.

The aim of the AICCs, AIS Director Mohammad Nazrul Islam says, is to reach out to the ‘unreachable’ farmers and reduce the information gap to boost crop production.

Tens of thousands of the 14.72 millions of farm households remain out of extension services due to inadequate agricultural extension workers.

Now, 12,000 agriculture extension officials work at field levels to give advice to farmers on crop production, and to motivate them to adopt new and advanced technologies to boost production. But it is difficult for a single extension worker to tend to 1,500-2,000 families.

A lack of knowledge of the extension workers on modern and continuously advancing agriculture is becoming an impediment to transferring information to farmers, analysts say.

Farmers say the advice they get through ICT on crop production and management is good help.

“We are getting good advice without any cost. It saves our time as we don’t have to travel miles to get suggestions from agriculture experts or wait for the agriculture extension officials to come,” says Mohammad Marfat Ullah, a 65-year old farmer at Purbadebu, Pirgachha.

“The services allowed me to cut crops losses. At the same time, I am also guided on how to grow various crops.”

To support farmers running the AICCs, AIS has opened a website, www.ais.gov.bd, in Bangla, where farmers can get the latest weather forecasts and information on ensuring better harvests.

The website contains materials on production and pest management methods for cereals, vegetables and fruits.

The website also includes a section where queries can be placed.

AIS officials say they provide preliminary training to farmers at AICCs before rendering services to other farmers.

Not only the government, but also some private sector organisations, including non-government organisations, have also taken steps to disseminate information to farmers through ICT.

The mobile phone is emerging as an aid for growers. The AIS, with support from Banglalink, has taken up an initiative to send text message alerts to inform farmers and field level agriculture workers on relevant information, like adverse weather conditions.

Another government initiative is the digital Purjee, a purchase order and sugarcane crushing date issued by local mills. Farmers are to bring their produce within three days of the issuance of Purjee.

Already, farmers who supply sugarcane to state-owned mills are receiving ‘purjee’ through text messages on their mobile phones. It has replaced the over 200-year tradition of sending Purjee to growers by paper.

Banlalink, the second biggest telecoms operator, also provides suggestions and answers to farmers’ queries through a call centre based helpline that runs round the clock. Banglalink users can dial 7676 for services.

But Refayet Ullah, another farmer at Purbadebu, says the service is complex and time consuming.

“I tried but it takes a lot of time. You have to press one button after another to reach the desired person. It is also difficult to clearly discuss the problems over phone,” says Refayet. “And call charges are also high.”

For Refayet and others farmers such as Barman, video conferencing is the most effective tool.

Mohammad Ataur Rahman, a 30-year-old strawberry farmer at Saidpur, said the online materials on production technology helped him to know the methods to strawberry farming.

“I learnt about how to prepare land, apply appropriate doses of fertilisers and prevent diseases by going through the website,” says Rahman, who sold strawberries worth Tk 130,000 last year by investing Tk 35,000 on 30 decimals of land.

But Rahman, who went to the AICC at Saidpur, Nilphamari, wants more information on marketing and packaging of farm produces.

Today, both Rahman and Barman are more confident than before. This is because of the support from expert advice and guidance from the AICCs in their localities.

“The internet services and scope for expert advice is a great relief. In case of any problem, I have support now,” says Barman.

sohel@thedailystar.net

Walton motorbike show from April 4

http://www.theindependentbd.com/business/others/40575-walton-motorbike-show-from-april-4.html

Walton motorbike show from April 4
Staff Reporter

Dhaka, Mar 22: For the first time in the country, Walton is going to organise a three-day motorbike show at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the city from April 4. The organiser claims that the show will bring to light the positive aspects of motorbikes. It ensures comfortable journey and helps to avoid traffic jams that are now posing a formidable threat to normal life style and the over all development of our country.

Different companies from home and abroad will exhibit their best models at the show  along with Walton, the country’s leading electronics, electrical and automobile manufacturing and marketing brand.

To make the show a success, Walton has already launched a publicity campaign at eight private universities and will continue the campaign at other universities in a bid to encourage students and young people.  On Sunday Walton conducted its publicity campaign on IUB campus in Bashundhara Residential area and on AIUB campus at Banani in the city.

Models Emon and Piasa were present at the programmes attended by several thousands of students. Mijanur Rahman, Walton director and international marketing expert, Shaheen Sarker, manager, and Udoy Hakim, deputy manager, of Walton creative and media department, and Enaet Ferdous, Walton adviser, were present, among others, at the programmes.

In his speech, Walton Director Mijanur Rahman said “For the first time in the country Walton is going to arrange the show with a view to popularising the motorbike use to ease traffic jam”.

There is no alternative to the use of motorbike to get rid of heavy traffic jam in the Dhaka city and ensure safe roads all over the country, he opined.

Walton is now manufacturing and marketing ultra modern technology incorporated energy saving remote control motorcycles and trying to reach the motorcycles within the capacity of young people, specially the students.

Due to world standard quality, Walton brand motorcycles are being exported to different countries of the world, he said.

Agricultural production and food security

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=130117&date=2011-03-23

Agricultural production and food security

It is a positive development that the government has drafted a Country Investment Plan (CIP) under the National Food Policy (NFP), which was formulated as far back as in 2006. The main objective of the CIP is to prepare detailed programmes for an investment outlay of about $10 billion until 2015 in the agricultural sector. Being still the economic backbone despite its declining share in the country’s annual gross domestic product (GDP), the agricultural sector is critically important to help ensure food security and nutrition for all. The food planning and monitoring unit of the ministry of food organized last Sunday in Dhaka a day-long discussion on the CIP, in cooperation with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID). At least three cabinet ministers, high government officials and representatives of donor agencies, among others, took part in deliberations there, highlighting the importance of agricultural productivity.

Food security is an issue that concerns every nation, big or small. But the issue has assumed far greater importance in a country like Bangladesh than the case with many others. Land resource of Bangladesh is scarce and its population growth rate is also high. Nearly 2.0 million new mouths are added to its population every year when, according to a study, almost 1.0 per cent of its arable land is lost to new infrastructures, homes and other economic activities. Some people have already underlined the need for enacting laws to stop any further loss of agricultural land. But, if the issue is considered from a practical point of view, it would be hard to stop the use of agricultural land for other purposes, to any substantial extent, because of the rising demand for the same for housing and other economic purposes. However, none is supposed to oppose any move to stop the abuse of valuable resource such as land.

Under the prevailing circumstances, the best option would be to raise the agricultural productivity through optimizing the use of the available land, deployment of the most efficient farming technology and placing a greater emphasis on research activities with an aim to develop the stress-resistant crop varieties. There is no denying that the production of rice in the country has more than doubled over the last three to four decades, mainly because of the use of high-yielding varieties (HYV) and application of improved farming technology. But the per-acre yield of rice and other crops is still low in Bangladesh compared to that in other countries of Asia. This is primarily because of lack of adequate field-level extension activities and imbalanced use of farm inputs. Besides, one of the striking features of the development in farming practices in Bangladesh has been the declining production of pulses, oil seeds and spices. Since rice is occupying more importance in the production plan of the growers, the acreage under those crops has declined over time, leading to import of the same in higher quantities.

The implementation of the CIP, being otherwise capital-intensive, would require substantial support from the development partners. Last Sunday’s discussion was aimed at sensitizing the donors about this. However, the availability of external funds would largely depend on the government’s seriousness and quality of its plans and projects aimed at ensuring food security and beefing up the national nutritional level in an integrated manner. It would not be, however, out of place to mention here that the availability of food in adequate quantities does not necessarily ensure food security for all. Here, the buying capacity of the poorer section of the population is an issue that needs to be dealt with due seriousness by the policymakers. The government has public food distribution system and safety net programmes for the poor and vulnerable sections of the population. But a large section of the poor people still does not have access to such programmes. So, efforts to improve the buying capacity of the poor should be made, side by side with the implementation of plans and programmes to increase agricultural production.

Canadian company invests $6.08m in Chittagong EPZ

http://www.theindependentbd.com/business/finance/40362-canadian-company-invests-608m-in-chittagong-epz.html

Canadian company invests $6.08m in Chittagong EPZ
STAFF REPORTER

Dhaka Mar 21: Industrial Hand Protection Limited, a Canadian company, will set up a textile and garment industries in the Chittagong export processing zone. This fully foreign owned company will invest 6.08 million US Dollar in setting up their unit and. will manufacture Industrial safety products including yarn, fabric and garments item.

The company will also create employment opportunity for 402 Bangladeshi nationals.

An agreement to this effect was signed between the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority and industrial hand protection limited in BEPZA Complex, Dhaka on Monday. Md. Moyjuddin Ahmed, Member (Investment Promotion) of BEPZA and Hussain Kassam, Managing Director of Mis. Industrial Hand Protection Limited signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organizations.

Major General A T M Shahidullslam, ndu, psc, executive chairman, Abu Reza Khan, member (Engineering), A.K.M Mahbubur Rahman, member (Finance), Md. Shawkat Nabi. Secretary, A.Z.M. Azizur Rahman, general manager (Investment Promotion) and other officials of BEPZA were present at the signing ceremony.

Credit info now a click away

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=178633

Credit info now a click away
Sajjadur Rahman

Waiting for days, or even months, for obtaining credit reports on borrowers is going to be a history next month with the full automation of the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) of the Bangladesh Bank (BB).

Banks and financial institutions (FIs) now can get the mandatory reports on the borrowers concerned in a few minutes by logging on to the automated CIB.

“CIB automation will not only reduce time but also the cost of doing business,” said BB Governor Dr Atiur Rahman.

“Currently, data and report verification is being carried out,” said Rahman.

The automated CIB went into trial run in October last year after nearly two years of works. The full-fledged operation of the Bureau is set to begin next month.

The governor said the project is important for enlarging and upgrading the capacity of the CIB to sort, handle and deliver credit information to and from the banks and FIs in high and fast expanding volumes.

Bankers said the service deserves faster pace in the wake of expansion of lenders’ portfolios to numerous small and medium enterprises and farm loans in addition to the booming personal loans.

BB data show the CIB had a huge backlog of over 60,000 inquiries for credit information in early last year. The central bank under a “crash programme” removed the backlog in June that year, making the information updated.

“Getting credit information of prospective bank borrowers would take a few minutes instead of present five working days on completion of the project,” said the governor. It took two months a couple of years ago and both lenders and borrowers had to bear extra costs for the reports.

To deal with the problem, the BB appointed SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility as consultant of the project, funded by UK Department for International Development (DFID), while Italian CRIF was appointed as the vendor to implement the project two years ago.

With the launch of the automated CIB, the service banks and non-bank financial institutions will be able to access the CIB database online, and get the credit reports of the borrowers concerned. The database will contain detailed information of individual borrowers, owners and guarantors.

“The online CIB will also minimise the extent of default loans,” said Rahman.

The rate of non-performing loans decreased to 14.71 percent in 2005 compared to more than 23 percent in the previous year. In 2000 the percentage of such loans was 34.9 percent, and now at a single digit level.

As the defaulters are not given any fresh loans, the banks and non-banks, before sanctioning any loan, will have to take clearance from the CIB that the applicant concerned is not a loan defaulter.

“The rate will further go down once the system is in operations,” said Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, an IT expert. He said the move would significantly reduce the time for obtaining a credit report.

A credit amounting to a minimum of $725 or Tk 50,000 comes under the provision for the reporting to the CIB, which was set up in August 1992 to improve the credit risk management and reduce default loans. World Bank funded the establishment of the bureau at that time.

Japan to support rural fishery

http://www.bssnews.net/newsDetails.php?cat=0&id=168055&date=2011-03-21

Japan to support rural fishery

DHAKA, March 21 (BSS)- A Japanese organization has set up a training center at Savar in Dhaka to impart training to rural farmers to promote agriculture, fishery, forestry and industrial development, especially in rural areas.

The Embassy of Japan and OISCA-IDB, the Japanese organization, today signed a contract for this development project for rural fishery in Bangladesh through Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGHSP) at the embassy here.

Ambassador of Japan to Bangladesh Tamotsu Shinotsuka and a representative of OISCA-IDB signed the contract, said a press release of the Embassy of Japan.

With a grant of US$ 97,122, the organization will excavate ponds and construct fish hatchery.

A total of 200 rural fishermen will be able to receive training in fishery and more than 500 fisheries will be expected to purchase fry of good quality every year through the project.

The government of Japan hopes that the assistance will help to improve the situation in the rural area in Bangladesh, the release said.

$21b plan for safe water, sanitation by 15 years

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=130093&date=2011-03-22

$21b plan for safe water, sanitation by 15 years
FE Report

The government has finalised a comprehensive plan to ensure safe drinking water and sanitation for all by the next fifteen years.

About US $ 21 billion investment package has been proposed for implementing the plan to ensure people’s access to safe drinking water having modern supply system and hygienic and quality toilets by 2025.

The Local Government Division (LGD) under the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives will implement the project.

The Policy Support Unit (PSU) of LGD formulated the plan after consultations with the people of different strata. The plan was finalised Monday at the national workshop on “Sector Development Plan (SDP) for Water Supply and Sanitation in Bangladesh” at a city hotel Monday.

The LGD organised the event with the joint secretary of the Local Government Division Zuena Aziz in the chair.

Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of LGRD and Cooperatives Advocate Md Rahmat Ali was present as the chief guest.

Deputy head of mission of the Danish Embassy Jen Moller Hansan, Secretary of LGD Abu Alam Md Shahid Khan, Deputy Secretary Shamsuddin Ahmed and Project Director Shariful Alam were present on the occasion.