Hasina launches mega economic zone

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday unveiled the foundation stone plaque of a mega economic zone in the country’s southeastern Chittagong region through a video conference from capital Dhaka.Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) has been developing the economic zone on 1,150 acres of land at Mirsarai area near seaport city Chittagong, some 242km southeast of capital Dhaka.The economic zone is just one hour’s road transport distance from the country’s premier Chittagong seaport and will be ready for investment in two years.Hasina unveiled the foundation plaque from the BEPZA organised International Investors’ Summit-2018 in capital Dhaka.In her speech, Hasina urged both the local and foreign investors to invest in Bangladesh.She said BEPZA has already made the country’s export processing zones as attractive destinations for investors both from home and abroad.Presently, investors from over 30 countries have invested some $4.34bn in the eight BEPZA-run export processing zones (EPZs).BEPZA reportedly expects an initial investment of $4.5bn in its ninth EPZ as well as creation of approximately some 500,000 new jobs in it.The area of the Mirsarai economic zone is reportedly almost half of the total area of 2,308 acres of all the eight existing EPZs under BEPZA.Officials had earlier said BEPZA will lease the EPZ’s 1,150 acres of land at about 3bn taka (about $36.14mn) to set up the economic zone.