Stressing the need for improving the infrastructure, they said a mega port along the Chittagong coastline serving Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, eastern India, Myanmar and south-western China should be built on a priority basis.

Nagorik Committee 2006 organised the sixth expert group consultation meeting on 'Vision 2021 for Bangladesh: Goal 6: To be globally integrated and to be a regional hub' in the Cirdap auditorium in Dhaka.

Syed Manzur Elahi, former adviser to a caretaker government, and Latifur Rahman, president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) jointly chaired the meeting.

Speaking at the meeting, Professor Rehman Sobhan, convener of Nagorik Committee 2006, said new areas of opportunities will open up in the region in the coming years and Bangladesh has to take advantage of it.

Citing an example, he said India's imports amount to around US$150 billion now and Bangladesh has to think how it can get a share of this huge emerging economy.

"Some are exporting goods worth $150 billion to India from different parts of the world. So, we have to think whether we want to get a share of these huge imports to India with or without trade preferences. And the business community has a very important role to play in this regard," he noted.

Not only China or India, other Asian countries are also going to move ahead and their economies will change significantly in the coming years, he said noting that Bangladesh has to identify short, medium and long-term supportive activities so that it can benefit from all these.

Citing another example, Professor Sobhan observed that countries like Japan and Korea will face workforce shortages due to their aging populations. Manpower will also become a big commodity and a lot of investments will take place in skill and language trainings.

Dr M Rahmatullah, an expert on transport, communications and infrastructure development, said Bangladesh has not taken advantage of its geographical location.

Stressing the need for changing mindsets, he said the country should open up its economy and transportation system creating a win-win situation for all the parties concerned.

Growth of container handling at the Chittagong port is 15 to 20 percent annually and the port has also become very congested, Rahmatullah said adding that rail communication has been neglected for long and presently only 11 percent of the containers are transported by railways.

M Syeduzzaman, former finance minister, said the cost of using inland river system is very low and it is one of very important factors for expanding trade and service activities.

Suhel Ahmed Choudhury, former commerce secretary, said Bangladesh can become a regional hub if there is a deep-sea port in Chittagong.

"I don't think that Saarc or Safta will work smoothly but we can get benefits if we concentrate on Asean," he said.

Anisul Islam Mahmud, a former minister, felt that it will be very difficult to become a regional hub without changing the political reality in the country and without improving its infrastructure significantly.

"To become a regional hub, we need to change our mindsets and think seriously whether we will allow other countries to have transit or not," Mahmud said stressing the need for concentrating more on human resources development.

M Mujibul Huq, former cabinet secretary, observed that every country cannot become a regional hub and there can be competition in this regard. "Labour will continue to be cheaper in Bangladesh for the next 15 years and the country can concentrate on labour intensive backward areas," he suggested.

Annisul Huq, former president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said there is a need for prioritising the vision and it should be implemented within the next five years.

Pointing to the port problem, he said Bangladeshi exporters are paying one lakh dollars more than the usual cost for a single vessel coming to the port. So, it is the infrastructure that needs to be focused on, he added.

"ICT (information and communications technology) sector can be an important area for Bangladesh. We had a bad time in ICT in the last couple of years and it has not regained momentum yet," Huq said.

Mirza Azizul Islam, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, mentioned that foreign investors do not face any problem on the capital market and there is no restriction on foreign companies now to go public and to issue initial public offerings.

Abul Ahsan Chowdhury, former state minister for foreign affairs, observed that there are some areas where it is necessary to take decisions without political interference. "We need to think seriously about offshore drilling to see a better energy sector," he recommended.

Fazlul Huq, president of Bangladesh Knitwear Exporters and Manufacturers Association (BKMEA), said the government prepared the poverty reduction strategy paper (PRSP) but it did not consult major trade bodies that generate substantial employment.

The government did not have any comprehensive plan in place, he said adding that it will be very difficult to move forward without changing attitudes of the government and its bureaucracy.

Syed Abul Hossain, an opposition lawmaker, said Bangladesh should seriously think about setting up a nuclear power plant.

Sayeeful Islam, former president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said economic priorities of the ruling BNP and opposition Awami League are the same. "So, there is no conflict in setting economic priorities and whoever will come to power through the next election will have to develop a roadmap towards the vision."

Earlier, making a presentation on the subject, Debapriya Bhattacharya, executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, said Bangladesh needs to utilise its strategic geographical location to become a regional economic and commercial hub.

China and India will be the world's two largest consumers and global companies will want to use Bangladesh as a base for producing and exporting goods and services to these countries, he said adding that as China and India move up, market and labour shortages will occur and new opportunities will be created for the country.