Adviser: Green shipbuilding can be new frontier for BD’s industrial dev, forex revenue
Dhaka, August 16 (Saturday):
Experts at a seminar on Saturday opined that lack of long-term financing, 15–20% higher production costs due to weak backward linkages, external shocks like COVID and the impact of Russia-Ukraine war are considered as the key constraints in flourishing the country’s emerging ship-building industry in the recent years.
International Business Forum of Bangladesh (IBFB) organized the seminar titled “Green Shipbuilding: A New Frontier for Industrialization” at Hotel Intercontinental Dhaka
Industries Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan attended the event as the chief guest while Dr. Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser, Finance Division was present as the special guest
Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI) Chairman & CEO, Dr. Zaidi Sattar, presented key note paper on the topic.
Addressing as the chief guest, Industries Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan said Bangladesh has earned global recognition in shipbuilding because the industry was able to meet the global standards, not it’s time to policy integration and implementation to grab the opportunity.
He urged IBFB to lead the initiative to bring together all the stakeholders take action oriented moves so that the sector can flourish expectedly.
IBFB President, Lutfunnisa Saudia Khan delivered opening remarks on the occasion while Engr. Md. Sakhawat Hossain, Director, IBFB and Chairman of Western Marine Shipyard, Humayun Rashid, Immediate Past President, IBFB also spoke on the occasion among others.
While addressing, Dr. Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser urged the policy makers to change their mindset and utilize domestic capacities.
“No economy can get dynamism only by remittance rather it’s industrialization that can bring changes in economy effectively. We are breaking the ships to build ships and the issues like environment, health are very vital to be addressed in this regard”, Dr. Chowdhury added.
In his keynote paper, Dr. Zaidi Sattar mentioned that export activity in this industry resumed modestly in 2024, with firms like Western Marine securing fresh orders. The sector restarted showing signs of revival in FY2025 while the country earned USD 143 million in ship exports in the last 12 year.
He said the government introduced the 2020 Shipbuilding Industry Development Policy, offering tax incentives and loan support.
Raising exports to $100 million by our export-oriented shipyards each is quite possible over the next 2 years and that would double employment to 100,000 in those shipyards, Dr. Sattar hoped.
The global commercial shipbuilding market is valued at USD 155 billion (2024) and is projected to reach around USD 193.4 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 4.8%. UNCTAD estimates the global market for shipbuilding at over $230 billion.
Key growth drivers include expanding international trade, increasing demand for energy-efficient vessels, naval modernization, and green technology
