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South Korea is trying to different sectors aside from ready-made clothes for its future investments, though there nonetheless stay plenty of challenges, South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Lee Jang-keun has mentioned.
Economics and enterprise had been the core of the relation between Bangladesh and South Korea, with infrastructure being one other space the 2 international locations can work on, the ambassador mentioned throughout a go to to The Enterprise Commonplace workplaces.
“Korea’s funding is already current on this nation. It’s the sixth greatest international direct funding nation for Bangladesh with $1.3 billion. Two years in the past, after I checked out this statistic, it was $1.1 billion. This funding is especially within the RMG sector which is sort of 80% of the overall funding, which is an excessive amount of for a selected sector.
“So, going past the RMG is what we’re taking a look at sooner or later. We wish firms from different sectors to speculate right here,” he mentioned.
“Most of those firms are small and medium sized. A few of them have already invested in Mongla port and a few in Adamjee EPZ,” he mentioned.
“The following sector might be infrastructure which might additionally herald different components within the purview. Moreover the Chattogram transport sector, we’re concerned within the Dhaka airport extension mission though it’s a Japanese mission. Samsung is bringing of their applied sciences in Bangladesh,” he mentioned.
Lee Jang-keun identified that one of many limitations of RMG is that solely small and medium firms are concerned in it. “However South Korea now has some very massive firms like Samsung, Hyundai and many others and they’re coming for infrastructure. For instance, if Samsung involves the nation and finds worth right here, they are going to keep right here. Samsung additionally has a analysis institute very near this place in Dhaka. They’re additionally collaborating with Fairgroup and have put in 4 machines of their manufacturing facility. If the Korean firms are profitable, they are going to deliver funding,” he mentioned.
Though the ambassador didn’t specify which different sectors South Korea was taking a look at, he mentioned that some steps needed to be taken first.
“Right here you could have an excellent labour power of which I usually hear from the Korean traders. However there are some issues like heavy site visitors – which I skilled right now. It could possibly improve value and take numerous time for transport of products and different issues. It’s a massive problem. The nation ought to handle this problem to draw extra funding,” Lee mentioned.
The ambassador additionally mentioned as a result of geopolitical state of affairs disrupting the availability chain, Korean firms had been making an attempt to diversify their sourcing international locations.
“In the course of the pandemic time, many Korean firms confronted difficulties in some international locations. A few of them even needed to scale back or shut their companies. After which, they’ve elevated their operation right here,” he mentioned.
On bilateral commerce, Ambassador Lee mentioned the amount was not sufficient and there have been alternatives to extend it.
“Final 12 months, our commerce quantity reached a historic excessive by crossing $2.1 billion. Korean export to Bangladesh was $1.6 billion or extra and Bangladesh’s export was $555 million. So, Korea’s exports elevated round 40%. And as much as Could this 12 months, additionally, that growing development continued.
“At first, the commerce quantity must be elevated after which we now have to see the businesses. As for funding, round 85% of our import from Bangladesh is RMG. So, Bangladesh has develop into a serious RMG supply for the Korean facet. Earlier than it was China or Vietnam. Many have no idea that Korea can be offering preferential commerce therapy and 95% of Bangladeshi merchandise are tax-, quota-free since 2008. So, since 2008, commerce quantity has elevated.”
Lee mentioned it was time to consider different merchandise except for RMG to import from Bangladesh, particularly fisheries and agriculture, terming these promising.
“And mangoes too. I actually loved the mango right here. However at the moment, there isn’t a direct maritime hyperlink or air hyperlink between Bangladesh and Korea. So, that’s hampering the additional improvement of our industrial ties. That’s one other space we’re wanting into.
“Korea is a peninsula which is surrounded by seas and there’s a metropolis referred to as Busan and that is the second largest transshipment port on this planet after Singapore. However we now have no direct hyperlink with Bangladesh. So, a direct hyperlink would improve commerce between the 2 international locations.”
On expatriate Bangladeshis in South Korea, he mentioned there have been now 10,000 Bangladeshi staff.
“Now we have a quota system and we take round 2,000 Bangladeshi staff. The pandemic affected them closely. From July 2020 as much as October final 12 months, we stopped taking staff. However from November final 12 months to date, greater than 2,500 staff travelled to Korea. Nonetheless, Korea is a most popular vacation spot for Bangladeshi staff and the remittance that they ship to Bangladesh is about $210 million. Korea was quantity twelfth the 12 months earlier than the pandemic by way of the quantity. The Bangladesh authorities desires to ship extra staff to Korea and we’re engaged on that.”
Requested what staff can do to be extra engaging choices for Korea, he mentioned they wanted to have a minimal talent within the Korean language.
“Now we have three BKTTCs [Bangladesh Korea Technical Training Centre] in Bangladesh in Savar, Mirpur and Chattogram. These centres present numerous coaching to staff. Nonetheless, we now have 1,600 Koreans in Bangladesh and 1,200 are in Dhaka,” Lee mentioned.
He additionally mentioned there have been many Bangladeshi college students in Korea, totally on scholarships, for doctorates and engineering.
In cooperation with Bangladesh, Lee mentioned there was a plan for Chattogram public transportation.
“One necessary factor on this transport part cooperation is said to the Padma Bridge. A Korean firm was supervising the development of the bridge. So, Korean firms are within the infrastructural space. We’re additionally putting in an clever transport system [ITS] in Bangladesh, which is quite common and extensively utilized in Korea. It could possibly robotically monitor the freeway state of affairs utilizing ICT expertise. It is going to be used on the Mawa expressway. I visited the expressway and was impressed by that.
“In Korea, we even have site visitors issues, particularly in Seoul. However the ITS system launched there has lessened the issue. However in Dhaka, you additionally want to vary the tradition to unravel this drawback,” he mentioned.
On what led to Korea’s progress within the final 50 years, the ambassador chalked it all the way down to arduous work, cooperation from different international locations such because the USA, and training.
“Schooling is the world the place our secret could lie. And the technology after independence did the whole lot to safe training for his or her kids and labored very arduous. And I see an identical state of affairs in Bangladesh…I see the rickshaw-pullers right here which jogs my memory of their ardour for all times as they should work very arduous beneath the solar to earn a really small amount of cash. The younger college students of the nation are additionally very bold,” he mentioned.
He additionally mentioned Korea didn’t have pure sources, so human capital was the one they centered on.
“And we now have very skilled political events as properly. I see that Bangladesh is now struggling for political democratisation or modernisation. It was solely in 1997 that we had political democracy with a number of events. Earlier, there was just one occasion which at all times got here into energy. However for democracy you additionally want an opportunity for the opposition occasion to have their share of energy,” he mentioned.
“Politicians are the respondent to the wants of the individuals of the nation. And I consider that that is why Korean tradition is now thriving all over the world like Ok-drama, Ok-pop, Squid Video games and many others. Individuals are free there to pursue their desires. I’m now taking a look at Bangladesh for that to occur and I feel in my lifetime it could actually occur.
“I see that the federal government of Bangladesh has performed a task till now. They’ve dominated the nation however what they need to do is to let the individuals lead the nation,” mentioned Ambassador Lee.
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