BIDA’s China Visit to Attract Foreign Investment: Efforts to Revive FDI Momentum

The interim government of Bangladesh continues its efforts to increase foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country. As part of this, a delegation led by Ashik Chowdhury, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), will visit China in the third week of this month in search of investment opportunities.

The BIDA delegation is scheduled to visit four major commercial cities in China—Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Guangzhou. Their main objective is to hold meetings with Chinese businesspeople to identify potential investors interested in investing in Bangladesh.

According to diplomatic sources, the Bangladesh Embassy in Beijing is facilitating contacts between Ashik Chowdhury’s delegation and Chinese businesspeople to ensure a successful visit. However, the exact number of confirmed meetings with investors and business representatives has not yet been disclosed.

Although foreign investment is crucial for the country's economy, FDI growth has been sluggish for a long time. According to Bangladesh Bank data, foreign investment has decreased in the fiscal year 2024-25. From July to April of the last fiscal year, foreign investment dropped to $910 million from $1.27 billion during the same period of the previous year. Total foreign investment for the fiscal year 2023-24 was $1.4154 billion.

In June, China’s Minister of Commerce, Wang Wentao, visited Dhaka with a delegation of businesspeople and investors. The delegation included nearly 250 representatives from 143 Chinese companies. Ahead of this visit, BIDA had anticipated some investment announcements from Chinese investors. During their stay in Dhaka, BIDA Chairman Ashik Chowdhury expressed hope that investments would come within six months to two years. He also noted that bringing in investments is a long process.

Economist Mahfuz Kabir told the media regarding foreign investment, “If efforts are made, foreign investment will definitely come. But the interim government has delayed a lot. It has been almost a year for this government. At this point, some significant progress was needed. An investment conference took place and efforts are ongoing. China is interested in investing in Bangladesh. However, fuel prices and interest rates are very high now. China is positive about Bangladesh. They want to do business and invest here. Bangladesh needs to offer them good packages to make them interested.”