Weekly News Clippings (May 23, 2014)

Dhanmondi playground half open (The Daily Star, May 23, 2014)
The Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club authorities have closed the main gate of the Dhanmondi playground on Road-8 on Wednesday but children have access to the ground through a side gate. The Dhaka South City Corporation opened the playground to public on April 24 following a High Court order. Its Administrator Md Alamgir told The Daily Star that the club authorities locked the gate and that they are waiting to hear what the Prime Minister's Office has to say about this since the club is named after Sheikh Jamal, the son of the Father of the Nation. The DSCC demolished a workers' shed of the club on May 18 but again spared three large semi-concrete structures housing the club just so that it could say that it complied with a 2011 High Court order that directed freeing the playground of illegal structures except those meant for sports.

Mid-income status not far off (The Daily Star, May 22, 2014)

Income per capita grew by 12.90 percent to $1,190 this fiscal year to take the country closer to the middle-income bracket, according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Bangladesh will be regarded a middle-income nation if it achieves at least an average per capita income of $1,026 for three consecutive years, with the figures being inflation adjusted. The per capita income last fiscal year was $1,054.According to the World Bank, the income thresholds are: low income $1,025 or less; lower middle-income $1,026 to $4,035; upper middle-income $4,036 to $12,475; and high income $12,476 or more.

Bangladesh must exploit green energy potential (The Daily Star, May 21, 2014)

Bangladesh has strong potential to exploit wind power and meet growing demand for green electricity. According to AnetteGalskjøt, commercial counsellor of Danida Business Partnerships of Denmark in Bangladesh, the 700km-long coastline in the coastal region of Bangladesh provides good prospects to develop offshore wind energy. Anette spoke at a discussion between Nordic and Bangladeshi companies, organised by the Danish and Swedish embassies. A total of 20 Danish companies, one Swedish company and an investment fund attended the session under the three-day Nordic trade delegation on green growth. Nordic companies can offer years of experience in wind power, solar energy, biogas, water treatment, recycling systems for waste and garbage and organic food production.

Bangladesh tea prices plunge on poor local demand (Reuters, May 20, 2014)

Tea prices in Bangladesh dropped on Tuesday at the second auction of the new season on weak demand from local buyers despite the arrival of fresh and good quality leaf, brokers said. Bangladeshi tea fetched an average of 183.82 taka ($2.3) per kg at the auction, down from 194.27 taka at the first auction of the new season, an official at National Brokers Limited said. Major buyers were back at the market on the arrival of fresh leaf as new season started, although demand were still weak that left huge volume of tea unsold, the official said.Bangladesh's tea production in 2013 rose 1.6 percent from ayear earlier to a record 63.5 million kg due to favourable weather.

Bangladesh seeks export privileges to US on climate vulnerability grounds (Eco Business, May 20, 2014)

Citing its increasing vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, Bangladesh has sought exemption from quotas and duty for all its exports to the United States.US trade representatives have said they will consider the call for “duty free, quota free” privileges, according to Bangladesh’s commerce secretary, Mahbub Ahmed.Such a rule change, if adopted, would make Bangladesh one of the first countries to receive duty reductions for “economic vulnerability” because of climate change.Increased emissions of greenhouse gases are blamed for a rise in global temperatures which is causing climate change are having increasingly serious effects on the economies of many low-lying countries, including Bangladesh, widely judged one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change.

Bangladesh a potential in fisheries, UN says (Dhaka Tribune, May 20, 2014)

Bangladesh, a leading country for fisheries produce, can play a significant role in the growing food demand for the world in the future. According to the latest report of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, Bangladesh is the fourth leading country in the world for inland fisheries production. The report highlighted the growing role of fish and aquaculture in feeding the world. “Asian countries are expected to account for 91% of world aquaculture production in 2022, with Bangladesh, Thailand, India and China experiencing highest growth rates,” the report said.However, the report warned that to continue to grow sustainability, aquaculture needs to become less dependent on wild fish for feeds and introduce greater diversity in farmed culture and practices.

59pc employers reluctant to hire marginalised women (The Daily Star, May 19, 2014)

More than half the employers in the private sector believe that marginalised women and physically-challenged people are less productive than men, a study by Swisscontact, a Zurich-headquartered nongovernmental organisation working in Bangladesh. Employers consider them a risk to profitability and remain reluctant to hire them, according to the study.Around 59 percent of employers do not want to hire the marginalised women because it might hinder profitability and sustainability of the institutions, Around 260 sample employers in six districts -- Dhaka, Jessore, Bogra, Nilphamari, Kurigram and Sunamganj -- were interviewed between February 2011 and March 2014 by MIDAS for the study. Only 41 percent employers hire women, while 55 percent do not have additional facilities for women, she said. 

Asia Naphtha-Bangladesh to sell naphtha at highest price since March 2013 (Reuters, May 19, 2014)

Bangladesh Petroleum Corp (BPC) will sell 170,000 barrels of naphtha to MRI Trading in May at a premium of $1.15 a barrel to Singapore quotes on a free-on-board (FOB) basis, the highest price in more than a year and sharply up from a previous sale.Five firms competed for the tender, which was reissued on short supply, for loading over May 28-30 from Chittagong, a BPC official said.This was the highest bid that BPC has received since March last year.BPC is importing 1.3 million tonnes of oil in 2014 for the Eastern Refinery, up more than 8 percent from a year earlier.

Bangladesh’s BoP surplus dwindles to over $3.89bn (Daily Times, May 19, 2014)

Bangladesh’s overall balance of payments or BoP surplus decreased by nearly 16 percent to $3.89 billion in the first three quarters of the current 2013-14 fiscal year ending next month, hit by moderate export growth and lower inward remittance, according to a Bangladesh Bank (BB) official. “Overall BoPregistered a surplus of $3,885 in July-March period of 2013-14 fiscal year, “he said. However, as export growth dipped and remittance income plunged, the BoP surplus slumped, meaning the country’s economy absorbed more than that it produced in the months.

US-Bangladesh Tech Investment Summit 2014 starts this week (Bangladesh info.com, May 19, 2014)

Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) has organized US Bangladesh Tech Investment Summit 2014 in Silicon Valley, Santa Clara, California, USA on 17 May, 2014 To further encourage and attract US Investors & investment.

Alliance reveals flaws in 30 garment factories (The Daily Star, May 18, 2014) 

Engineers of 26 US retailers and brands under the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety have so far closed down one factory in Chittagong, a year after the Rana Plaza collapse killed 1,138 people.The platform has suggested the review panel close down five more garment factories as they did not meet the standards of Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC).It found a wide deviation between the approved drawings and actual construction supported by the evidence of cracks and a need for repair. The inspection teamalso found a lack of fire alarms and a need for better enclosure and maintenance of electrical wiring.The Alliance, which had that started on March 12 with seven teams, has inspected 508 out of the 626 factories in Dhaka and Chittagong.

RMG accessories makers assured ofpolicy support (Dhaka Tribune, May 18, 2014)

The government would provide policy support to garment accessories and packaging manufacturers to help the sub-sector grow parallel to the apparel industry.State minister for finance MA Mannanmade the statement at the inauguration of funded by the Bangladesh government and the European Union, which aims to develop SMEs in the country.The project, INSPIRED, endeavors to enhance competitiveness and sustainable pro-poor growth of SMEs in selected sub-sectors of the economy, such as, sectors like agro-processing, natural fibres, leather, plastics, light engineering, electronics, furniture and textiles. Under the Programme, €6.5m will be provided to business intermediary organisations to improve their competitiveness. The country has more than 1,200 garments accessories and packaging factories, employing more than 3 lakh people.