Four IR and digital technology have reduced the cost of all business related tasks in cross-border trade. There is a lot of skilled manpower in ICT in the country now.
Minister for Commerce Tipu Munshi made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural function of a workshop titled "Fourth Industrial Revolution: A tool for trade expansion" jointly organized by the Ministry of Commerce and Bangladesh Computer Society at the conference room of the Ministry of Commerce at the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka on Thursday. He said, “In 2041, Bangladesh will emerge as a developed country in the world. For this, Bangladesh has to join the Fourth Industrial Revolution or Four IR and play a leading role. For this, IR needs to build skilled human resources in related technology. Only then will it be possible for trade and commerce to move forward in the world.”
Referring to readymade garments, the country's main export sector the minister said technology has reduced production costs and administrative costs, while production has increased. Man-made fiber is now used in about 70 percent of the global readymade garment sector. As a result, Bangladesh has to face a big challenge in the competition in the world market. Now Bangladesh is using only 25 percent man-made fiber.
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Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced to build a digital Bangladesh after forming the current government, which at that time seemed impossible to many. Today, digital Bangladesh is not a fantasy, it is real. The touch of technology is felt everywhere, he added.
Mentioning the use of technology in business has increased tremendously, he said, “The world now relies on technology. We need to keep pace with change. We have to move forward by accepting the use of technology in our thoughts and consciousness.”
Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh addressed the function as the special guest under the chairmanship of Shahid-ul-Munir, Bangladesh Computer Association President.
Additional Secretary Director General of WTO Cell Hafizur Rahman made the welcoming remarks. General Secretary of Bangladesh Open Source Network Engineer Munir Hasan presented the keynote address on the topic. Participating in the panel discussion were- Solutions Architect, Amazon Web Services Leader Mohammad Mahdi-uz-Zaman, Dhaka University Professor at Robotics and Mechatronics Lafifa Jamal, The Computers Ltd Managing Director Atiq-e-Rabbani, Data Soft Systems Bangladesh Ltd Managing Director Mahbub Zaman and ICT Industry Skills Council President Shabqat Haider.
