A business group with global footprints, an intrepid entrepreneur and a game-changing financial institution were felicitated with the Bangladesh Business Awards for their exemplary contribution to the economy.
MA Jabbar, managing director of DBL Group, was the Business Person of the Year, Pran-RFL Group the Enterprise of the Year and leading mobile financial service provider bKash the Best Financial Institution in the 20th edition of the award introduced by DHL Express and The Daily Star.
Planning Minister MA Mannan handed over the trophies to the winners at a gala event at the Radisson Blu Water Garden Hotel in the presence of RS Subramanian, senior vice-president South Asia and managing director of DHL Express India; Md Miarul Haque, MD of DHL Express Bangladesh, and Mahfuz Anam, editor and publisher of The Daily Star.
Mannan said Bangladesh should be a trillion-dollar economy by 2041 or even earlier and the government has the ambition to establish a sustainable, civilised and scientifically-oriented modern society.
“Because of the hard-working people, our fortune has changed. But we are not there yet — we can’t be complacent.”
The government is gunning to become a developed country by 2041 and an upper-middle-income country by 2041, he said at the event styled “Bridge to Prosperity – Connecting Beyond Borders”.
Mannan went on to assure the business community of the government’s constant support so that they can leverage their strength to the hilt and help the country reach its full potential along the way.
“We are a business-friendly government,” he added.
Subramanian underscored the need to sustain Bangladesh’s commendable growth momentum through cross-border collaboration, particularly through business-to-business e-commerce, or B2B.
“B2B is no longer considered the underdog of e-commerce. In fact, corporate customers prioritise suppliers and partners that allow them to trade online without first speaking with a sales representative.”
By 2025, 80 percent of all B2B sales interactions between suppliers and professional buyers would occur online, he said, citing a study.
“So, none of us have the option to ignore the disruptive change that is taking place all around us.”
“We want to work with the private sector hand in hand to create better workplaces for workers and create more jobs for people.”
“We want to work with the private sector hand in hand to create better workplaces for workers and create more jobs for people.”
To tap into the tremendous opportunities awaiting in the era of e-commerce, digitalisation, globalisation and sustainability, business leaders, entrepreneurs, industry experts and legislators must make a deliberate and concerted effort toward building the right environment for local businesses to thrive in a competitive world.
“As we know, countries that can implement regulatory reforms more quickly and create favourable policies that encourage cross-border trade will stand to gain the most,” he added.
Behind the Bangladesh economy’s spectacular figures of the past two decades are innovators, industrious working class, ingenious entrepreneurs and certain government policies, Anam said.
However, to level up, the weakness in the whole governance system needs to be corrected.
“The key to a successful improvement in the governance system is a provision of accountability. Power, by itself, is a dangerous commodity. But power with checks and balance is a brilliant instrument of moving forward.”
He suggested a thorough reform of the legal structure in keeping with the progression of the economy.
For the private sector to grow, there has to be a transformational change to the tax system as well, Anam added.
“For the last 20 years, the Bangladesh Business Awards have honoured the most outstanding accomplishments and contributions of business leaders in the nation.”
“For the last 20 years, the Bangladesh Business Awards have honoured the most outstanding accomplishments and contributions of business leaders in the nation.”
Pran-RFL Group is working towards the industrialisation of Bangladesh, said Ahsan Khan Chowdhury, its chairman and chief executive officer.
“We are feeling encouraged. We will accelerate our work so that Bangladesh marches ahead. We will take Bangladesh forward,” he added.
Jabbar described winning the award as “absolutely amazing”. “And definitely it will encourage us to do more,” he said.
After 50 years of independence, Bangladesh is making a giant leap towards prosperity with inclusive growth, said Kamal Quadir, founder and CEO of bKash.
“Keeping up with this pace, in just over a decade, bKash has relentlessly worked to bring unbanked and underbanked people into the formal financial sector under the regulations of Bangladesh Bank from the very beginning, which reflected the government’s vision.”
The recognition from the DHL-The Daily Star is a validation of the MFS provider’s steadfast journey.
“It has not been a sprint, but a marathon with corporate discipline, compliant practices and customer-centric focus,” Quadir added.
At the event, Ayman Sadiq, founder and CEO of 10 Minute School, and Shahir Chowdhury, co-founder and CEO of Shikho, both educational technology start-ups, were honoured as youth icons.
Sadiq shared a number of stories about how 10 Minute School and its largely free educational contents are changing the lives of students, including the underprivileged, from across the country by helping them get into the best universities in Bangladesh.
“It’s crucial to provide opportunity to the people who are left behind.”
“It’s crucial to provide opportunity to the people who are left behind.”
Chowdhury also talked about the changing landscape in the education sector and how digitalisation is shaping it.
“Digitalisation in the educational sector has been taking place for many years. The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the pace,” he said, adding that e-learning is crucial to bridge the skill gap and making education accessible.
Mannan also gave away the trophies to the winners of the 19th edition of the Awards, which took place virtually in December 2020 for the global coronavirus pandemic.
As our economy continues to thrive and our middle class continues to grow, education and skills will be the most important factor for upward social mobility.
As our economy continues to thrive and our middle class continues to grow, education and skills will be the most important factor for upward social mobility.
Abdul Muktadir, chairman and managing director of Incepta Pharmaceuticals, was the Business Person of the Year, while Rupali Chowdhury, managing director of Berger Paints Bangladesh, was the Outstanding Woman in Business.
Dutch-Bangla Bank was the Best Financial Institution and Snowtex the Business Enterprise of the Year.
Muktadir and SM Khaled, managing director of Snowtex, received the crests.
Li Jiming, Chinese ambassador to Bangladesh; Vikram K Doraiswami, High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh; Mahbubur Rahman, president of the International Chamber of Commerce Bangladesh; Syed Alamgir, managing director and CEO of Akij Ventures; Nasir Ahmad Choudhury, adviser and founding managing director of Green Delta Insurance; Golam Mainuddin, chairman of British American Tobacco Bangladesh; Naser Ezaz Bijoy, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh; Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director and CEO of Mutual Trust Bank; Md Kyser Hamid, managing director and CEO of Bangladesh Finance and Investment; Shaheen Anam, executive director of Manusher Jonno Foundation; Syed Mohammad Kamal, country manager of MasterCard; and Sabiha Amjad and Uzma Chowdhury, directors of Pran-RFL Group, were present on the occasion.
Azra Mahmood, famed choreographer and television presenter, was the master of the ceremony.
Business Person of the Year
Born in 1961 in the capital’s Tejgaon area to a humble businessman, MA Jabbar aspired to be a business tycoon for as long as he can remember.
After completing his higher secondary education at Chattogram College and schooling at Adamjee Cantonment High School, he took off for the US to study computer science and technology at the University of Texas, Dallas.
But his heart stayed in Bangladesh. So soon after completion of his studies in the early 90s, he returned home to his family business: the Dulal Brothers.
Nestled in Dhaka’s bustling Farmgate area was the Dulal Brothers’ modest garment factory of 300 workers. The company was struggling to survive for want of work orders from abroad.
But Jabbar, fresh from his first-hand experience of the great American entrepreneurial spirit, had an off-kilter idea: go big or go home.
So in 1994, the troubled company, which was set up three years earlier, went big on expansion and there has been no looking back since.
Today, Dulal Brothers has transformed into DBL Group, a sprawling conglomerate of 24 business and industrial units in areas ranging from textile, spinning, dyeing, finishing, garment, pharmaceuticals, ICT, dredging, ceramics and packaging
DBL Group, led by its managing director Jabbar, exports goods worth about $500 million, and it is expecting to cross the landmark $1 billion in annual turnover by this fiscal year, up 15 percent year-on-year.
Over the next five years, it plans to invest $750 million in its DBL Industrial Park at Sylhet, cross $2 billion in annual turnover and hit an employee count of 85,000 from its existing 43,000.
bKash
Best Financial Institution of the Year
In 2011, bKash — which means development or prosperity in Bangla — started its journey, which, for all intents and purposes, lived up to its Bangla meaning.
From its inception, bKash has become an integral part of the lives of millions, particularly in rural areas, who were overlooked by formal financial institutions.
Today, thanks to its fast, easy and secure digital transactions, it has become a household name in Bangladesh. So much so that the word “bKash” has become a verb; people now say “bKash koro (me)” instead of “send me money”.
Catering to people’s daily transactional needs, it is empowering them to fulfil their dreams as well as take the country forward.
The company now has a robust network of nearly 300,000 agents and more than 260,000 merchants across the country with over 63 million verified customers and a wide range of services.
bKash started as a joint venture between BRAC Bank and Money in Motion LLC, USA. In April 2013, International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, became an equity partner and in March 2014, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation became an investor in the company.
In April 2018, Ant Financial (Ali Pay), an affiliate of globally reputed Alibaba Group, became an investor in bKash. And last year came global tech investor SoftBank.
With its exponential growth, the company has been recognised globally and locally.
It was ranked as the 23rd company in the annual list of Fortune Magazine’s “Change the World in 2017” among the top 50 companies across the world making changes based on social issues.
Pran-RFL Group
Enterprise of the Year
Fair price with a wide variety of products has been the modus operandi of Pran Group, which has enabled it to continue to expand its footprint all over the world.
“We dreamt of becoming a billion-dollar company like Unilever or Nestle but it is tough with few product lines,” said Ahsan Khan Chowdhury, chairman and chief executive officer of Pran-RFL Group.
With world domination in mind, it has taken the strategy of launching thousands of products and hundreds of brands to reach out to all types of consumers.
Pran-RFL Group has more than 8,000 products and 100 brands in its portfolio.
“If every product can bring in a million dollars, then our dream of hitting hundreds of billions of dollars in turnover may come true.”
Thanks to product diversification, Pran was able to continue to expand its business in any situation.
In 2022, the growth rate for domestic sales was 22 percent while its overseas sales rose 13 percent. Its annual turnover is about $3 billion (considering USD 1=Taka 86). Its net profit growth rate was 16 percent and revenue growth was 6 percent.
“This turnover is almost nothing in comparison to our dream — it’s a dot on a bigger map.”
Many food companies log in revenue of $100 billion in a year, he said.
By 2025, Pran-RFL Group hopes to log in exports of $1 billion and by 2030, $2 billion. In fiscal 2021-22, its exports were $532 million.
The company is doing well in India, Africa, America and Europe, Chowdhury said, adding that the company is eyeing the ASEAN market too.
প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা ভারতে ৪ দিনের রাষ্ট্রীয় সফরের প্রথম দিনে দেশটির পররাষ্ট্রমন্ত্রী এস জয়শঙ্করের সঙ্গে মিয়ানমার ও জ্বালানি নিরাপত্তাসহ বিভিন্ন বিষয়ে আলোচনা করেছেন।