‘Bangladesh, South Korea have great potential to further economic ties’

Ambassador of South Korea to Bangladesh Lee Jang-keun today stressed that the two countries have great potential to further develop mutually beneficial economic ties.

The South Korean envoy said this at a roundtable meeting on South Korea-Bangladesh economic relations held at the World Trade Center in Chattogram, organised by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in cooperation with Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) and Korea-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KBCCI). 

"The first roundtable meeting in Chattogram, the gate to Bangladesh, would be another step towards the end and serve as valuable opportunity to further untap the bilateral economic potential," Ambassador Lee said, while making a presentation on South Korea-Bangladesh relations focusing on trade and investment. 

He also reaffirmed his commitment for making efforts to elevate the bilateral relations to a new height and diversify the areas of cooperation through more engagement with the business community in Chattogram.

Ambassador Lee also called upon the CCCI to provide support to the Korean business community in Chattogram for successful operation of their businesses in the port city, mentioning the necessity of listening to the existing investors in order to attract more Korean companies.

Appreciating the strong economic ties between the two friendly nations, the participants discussed opportunities and challenges in further promoting bilateral economic partnership.

They also opined that the South Korea and Bangladesh should seek to expand areas of  economic  cooperation  to  infrastructure,  ICT,  and  health sectors, among others, based  on  the  history  of  successful  cooperation  in ready-made garment (RMG) sector, in which Chattogram has been playing a crucial role.  

CCCI members expressed the organisation's readiness to increase their business relations with Korean companies and proposed more interactions and programmes to this end.

Business leaders from  both  countries including Mostafa  Kamal,  president  of  KBCCI  and chairman  of  Meghna  Group  of Industries(MGI); Mahbubul Alam, president of CCCI; Young-oh Ryu, president of  the  Korean Association  in  Bangladesh;  Jinhyuk  Paik,  president  of  the  Korean Association in  Chattogram, among others -- joined  the  meeting.  Representatives of Korean companies operating in Chattogram, including Youngone Corporation, were also present at the meeting.

Chattogram has been an important base for the Korean investors and hosts more than 40 Korean companies at present, including Youngone Corporation, BESTEC, GIANT, MZM Textile, HKD, Young An Hat, Pacific Zipper, UJIN, NEO PRINTEC, GH HAEWAE, LHOTSE, among others. 

Youngone Corporation, the first Korean investor in Bangladesh's RMG sector and also the operator of the Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ) in Chattogram, set up its first factory in the city in 1980 and currently employs more than 75,000 local workers across the country.