This Project titled Project for Promoting Investment and Enhancing Industrial Competitiveness in the People’s Republic of Bangladesh (BIPIC) was intended to encourage policy formulation for harmonized industrial development through investment promotion and domestic industry promotion, with focus on linkage formation between foreign invested companies and domestic supporting industry. Under Component-2, the main objective of the task was to accelerate of development of Economic Zones which contributes to investment promotion as well as the strengthening of management mechanism of Economic Zones.

Component 2 of JICA Project Team, Strengthening Economic Zone Operation focused on support for the establishment of BEZA One Stop Service Centre (hereinafter “OSSC”) and its operation management considering their staff allocation and prioritized assistance for which BEZA required at times during May 2017 to February 2020.

JICA Project Team also actively engaged in the formulation of BEZA Information System, preparation of draft Standard Operating Procedure (hereinafter “SOP”) for EZ development, and proactive discussions about investment promotion events as well as Linkage Formulation platform to discuss measures for linkage formation. Although the project activities were influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020, JICA Project Team continued to support BEZA OSSC, with solid support from the project counterpart (hereinafter the “C/P”), in both preparing and operating internal management documents and monthly reports. Site surveys were timely conducted in order to understand key challenges of EZ development. Likewise, in accordance with BEZA’s intention to actively examine various measures concerning investment promotion under COVID-19, JICA Project Team proposed and started to deal with the following additional activities since November 2020: OSSC hybrid functioning, EZ development and operation capacity building, drafting customs clearance in EZ, and image building for prospective investors.