B Mirror Report: Representatives from various industrial bodies have welcomed a joint initiative by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies and the Bangladesh Chamber of Industries to regularly produce and publish a manufacturing index reflecting real conditions several industrial sectors and the overall. They also pledged full cooperation to ensure the success of the effort by providing real time data. A stakeholder consultation meeting was held at the BIDS conference room on Saturday to discuss the proposed research titled “BIDS-BCI Industry 100 Index.” It will focus on large and medium manufacturing industries across multiple sectors. The session was chaired by Professor Dr. A. K. Enamul Haque, Director General of the BIDS, while Anwar-ul Alam Chowdhury Parvez, President of BCI, attended as the guest of honor. The keynote paper was presented by Dr. Kazi Iqbal, the Research Director at BIDS.
The BIDS DG noted that discussions about the state of industry are common but those are often not supported by strong data. He explained that the initiative aims to address this gap by developing a structured manufacturing index. The BIDS will handle technical aspects such as data collection, processing, and analysis, while BCI will help them by arranging real time industry-level data. The BCI President Anwar- ul Alam Chowdhury Parvez emphasized that the manufacturing sector in Bangladesh does not always receive proper policy support due to lack of proper data. He pointed out that manufacturing is often conflated with services and trading, making it difficult to present accurate information to policymakers. Parvez stressed the importance of real-time data to support industrial growth, entrepreneurship, and foreign investment, expressing confidence in BIDS’s ability to deliver a credible research outcome. In his presentation, Dr. Iqbal stated that the index will be developed on a quarterly basis using a proprietary model. The study will primarily cover medium and large industries, including ready-made garments, textiles and garment, pharmaceuticals, plastics and rubber, leather, food processing, light engineering, furniture, automobiles and motorcycles, ICT and software, electrical and electronics, cement, steel and metals. The consultation elaborately featured remarks from representatives of various industry associations and companies, who shared their perspectives and expressed support for the initiative.
The meeting was addressed among others by Mrs. Preeti Chakraborty, Senior Vice President, BCI, Matiur Rahman, Chairman, Uttara Motors, Major Retired Rafiqul Islam, Secretary General, Footwear Leather goods and Accessories Exporters Association, Md. Shahriar, President, Bangladesh Garments Accessoriesand Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Md. Shaheed Alam, Director, BCI, Shamim Ahmed, President, BPGMEA, ShamsulAlam Khan, Executive Director, Bangladesh Steel Manufacturers Association, Shah AlamLitu, Director, BCI, Alimul Ahsan Chowdhury, President, Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Association, S. M. Saifur Rahman, President, Bangladesh API and Intermediary Manufacturers Association, Shankar Kumar Roy, Executive Director, Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association, and S. M. M. Rahman, Founder and Chairman, Faria (BD).
