The chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, on September 14 put the ball to the business community’s court in taking the lead to overcome the problems of high demands on limited resources. He advised the business community to solve the recent labour unrest in the RMG sector on their own initiative while taking a move to lower costs and easier access to finance from the private banks, which have a major stake in the country’s banking system.

‘The government is not the answer to all problems in the market, but it can facilitate solutions to the problems,’ he told a dialogue of business community at Hotel Radisson. ‘It is ultimately the responsibility of the business community to take the lead and solve the problem. That is the best and only way forward for us,’ said the chief adviser, assuring government’s role of facilitation with as little intrusiveness as possible.

The Bangladesh Better Business Forum and the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry jointly organised the dialogue titled ‘Public-private partnership for economic development: Bangladesh perspective’ marking the first anniversary of the BBBF.

The finance adviser, AB Mirza Azizul Islam, chief of army staff, General Moeen U Ahmed, BBBF members ICC,B president Mahbubur Rahman, DCCI president Hossain Khaled and industrialist Laila Kabir took part in the discussion, while FBCCI president Annisul Huq gave the address of welcome. Replying to a volley of questions from the audience mainly from the businesses, the chief adviser said the government would continue to give emphasis on maintaining law and order.

He, however, called upon the RMG entrepreneurs to consider labour as a production input like their capital and solve the problem of the investment on their own. ‘The government will maintain the law and order, but we also want that the industry must have to take some responsibility,’ he said. Replying to another question on energy crisis, prime concern of the business community, Fakhruddin said the national coal policy was being discussed in the council of advisers while the first meeting sent back the draft policy for further review.

In response to another question, Fakhruddin expected that the progress of BBBF activities would be faster next year than the first year when the body put forward 249 recommendations to better business climate. The government so far implemented 52 recommendations while 61 remained under implementation and 128 others under review, the meeting was told.

Amid demand from a woman business leader, Nasrin Awal Mintoo, the BBBF chairman instructed the BBBF secretariat to ensure more women representation in the body. The finance adviser called upon the private sector to use the BBBF in reducing the lending rates on bank loans so that they could help their counterpart in the production, as a significant part of the banking system is owned by the private sector.

General Moeen U Ahmed pointed out that endemic corruption in certain sectors was damaging the image of the country, hindering the foreign direct investment in the country. ‘If we can remove corruption, we can have economic growth at a rate of double digit,’ he said. Advisers, special assistants to the chief adviser, senior bureaucrats, BBBF members, diplomats, civil society members and business leaders were present at the meeting