File photo: Female workers seen working at a RMG factory in Dhaka Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune

MIGA's vice president is in Dhaka to discuss ways to enhance private sector investment

A senior official of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) has said Bangladesh is poised to emerge as the world's 30th largest economy over the next few years, with a trillion-dollar GDP.

Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of MIGA, S Vijay Iyer, said this in a statement released on Wednesday.

The statement read: "In order to ensure sustained economic development, it is essential that the country is seen as a safe harbor for foreign investment, particularly in sectors that are critical towards this growth: energy, infrastructure, manufacturing and agriculture."

MIGA, the political risk insurance arm of the World Bank Group, was created in 1988 to promote foreign direct investment in emerging economies.

“MIGA's comparative value add rests in its ability to attract and secure foreign investment while at the same time ensuring that these investments serve a catalytic purpose which contribute towards the overall development of the country,” Iyer said.

The top official is currently in Dhaka to discuss ways to enhance private sector investment in key industries such as: energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, and agricultural development.

Iyer is holding meetings with: government officials, senior leadership from state-owned and private sector enterprises, financial lending institutions, and regional business leaders.

MIGA is currently exploring the possibility of supporting the building of an energy efficient fertilizer plant, in Narsingdi, that would produce urea from natural gas. This would: help boost domestic urea production, improve agricultural production, enhance food security, and reduce environmental pollution.

Overall, MIGA's guarantees have contributed significantly to harnessing private investment to generate power in Bangladesh, with an active portfolio of over $500 million.

When fully-implemented, these projects are expected to generate 10,980 GWhs of electricity annually, procure $40 million in goods and services from domestic suppliers annually, and support the creation of over 650 direct jobs.