Rizwan Rahman, president of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), said traders would not be able to meet the next challenge if the tax rate was not reduced.
"Tax rates in neighboring countries are lower than in our country," he said. Economic zones are being created in the country. However, due to high tax rates, foreign investment is declining. If the tax rate is reduced, foreign investment will increase further.
He made the remarks at a program titled "Meet the Press 2022" at the DCCI auditorium in the capital on Sunday (February 6).
DCCI President Rizwan Rahman said the cost of doing business after LDC graduation by 2026 would be costly. If the tax rate is as high as it is now, the traders will suffer. After LDC graduation, local companies will lose about 6-7 billion if they cannot compete in business.
He said the current corporate tax rate is 20 per cent in Vietnam, 20 per cent in Cambodia, 29 per cent in Pakistan, 24 per cent in Sri Lanka and 20 per cent in Thailand. There is an average corporate tax rate of 30 percent in Bangladesh. We need to further reduce this rate. It's not just the tax rate that needs to be reduced. We need to increase our income, increase production. GDP must increase.
The DCCI president said, "I am not talking about reducing the rate in one day." Then the development of the country will be hampered. It should be reduced little by little every year. Now it is 30 percent. Next year it should be 27.5 percent and then it should be brought down to 25.5 percent.
Calling on the government to formulate an export diversification strategy involving all stakeholders, Rizwan Rahman said, "We export 1 percent of our products to Africa and 3 percent to Middle Eastern countries." We are exporting about 18 percent to distant America. Why we are not able to increase the export of goods to the neighboring countries. It needs to be researched.
"We need to work on skills development," he said. Emphasis is placed on research. That is a good thing, but if we do not focus on science research, we should increase research on economics and then the economic growth of the country will be more.
Referring to the maritime economy as very promising for Bangladesh, he said, "It contributes 3.1 percent to our GDP." In order to utilize this potential properly, an effective vision has to be formulated.
DCCI Vice President Arman Haque and Vice President Monowar Hossain were present on the occasion.