The investment in the country is stalled within 22 percent of the GDP as the local investors are reluctant to make investment due to scarcity of gas, crisis of confidence and high rate of interest, besides questioning over the source of money.According to ‘Doing business’ report of the World Bank, the investment in Bangladesh has slumped in 2015.Sources point out that Bangladesh could have been a big destination for investment as this country has a big market, duty-free export facilities for commodities and low cost of labour force. But there is no progress in investment as expected. Private investment is confined to 22 percent of the GDP. Experts feel that something additional has to be done, if the investment has to be increased by another four to five percent. Complications in investment must be reduced, interest rate cut down and availability of land ensured along with arrangements for gas and power.Apart from the problems mentioned by the World Bank, there are complexities in two fields. Firstly, decline in the flow of money over the last few years and secondly, raising question over the source of money. The economy was vibrant during the first three years of the government’s last tenure with adequate supply of money in the market and extra demand for commodities in the industrial sector. But on the pretext of containing inflation, Bangladesh Bank is releasing money in the market at a limited rate. As a result, economy is less vibrant and the capital market is not performing well. The investors in the major sectors like housing, cement, steel, furniture, oil and sugar refineries, paper, ceramics and jute are facing great trouble now. There is lack of extra impetus in most of the export oriented sectors. As a result, the businessmen are not coming forward with investment in the market of depression. There is a crisis of confidence also among the businessmen. It is uncertain to which direction the politics will go and whether the source of money will be questioned. So, the businessmen are feeling it secure to take the money abroad instead of making investment in uncertain condition. Analysts maintain, it is due to the complications in investment that money laundering from Bangladesh is on the rise.
