A taskforce has recommended four fiscal supports that include setting up a fund to catalyse design and packaging components of the potential semiconductor industry in the country.
The fund will be operated by the Information and Communication Technology Division or Bangladesh Bank to provide venture capital support or term-financing to new initiatives against clear criteria, according to recommendations from the National Semiconductor Taskforce.
Semiconductors are crucial for modern technology as they are essential in everything from smartphones and computers to medical equipment and transportation systems.
With the submission of the recommendation to chief adviser Muhmmad Yunus on Wednesday, the taskforce wanted tax exemptions for up to 10 years set up with certain guideline for research and development, and assembly and packaging factories.
The taskforce has also recommended short, medium and long-term interventions against each focus area.
Bonded facilities and streamlined customs processes for packaging and testing units to enable exports and time-bound import facilitation interventions are the other recommendations of the committee as a short term measure for the period of 2025-2026.聽
The taskforce defined 2027-2029 as medium term while the 2030 and beyond as long-term.
Describing the semiconductor industry one of the fastest growing sectors the taskforce, headed by Bangladesh Investment Development Authority executive chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun, has recommended focusing design immediately and testing and packaging for the short to medium-term.
It said fabrication or chip manufacturing 鈥� the ultimate object of the semiconductor industry 鈥� can be forayed in the long-term because of requirement of significant expertise, precision and expensive equipment.
It also said that experts had prepared a roadmap with three priority areas such as skills development, business environment and policy support, and global linkages and collaborations for intervention.
Creation of a virtual knowledge portal to launch a tiered certification (levels 1-3), with a globally accepted and industry-backed curriculum and setting up industry-standard training labs in at least five selected public or private institutions by 2027 have been suggested by the taskforce for skill development.
At a press conference on Thursday, Ashik Chowdhury said they urged for establishing a rotation-based on-site training calendar for selected industry players and universities to facilitate training on the effective use of packaging and testing machines, according to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha.
He said the semiconductor industry offers Bangladesh a unique opportunity to graduate into a high-value, high-growth sector and establish itself as a credible player in the global technology ecosystem.
Semiconductor industry has already been identified in the National Foreign Direct Investment聽 heatmap exercise conducted by BIDA and classified as a sector requiring policy and capacity support to unlock the its long-term potential.
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department head Professor ABM Harun-ur-Rashid and CEO of Ulks Mohammed Enayetur Rahman also spoke on the occasion.
Harun-Ur-Rashid said they recommended creating a virtual knowledge portal to launch a tiered certification (levels 1-3), with a globally accepted and industry-backed curriculum.
A combination of online courses and in-person teaching will be disseminated through selected public and private universities. This will enable a faster supply of design engineers to the market on an immediate basis, he added.
He laid emphasis on encouraging selected universities to offer advanced courses for students to pursue specialisations; for example, in the senior year of bachelor鈥檚 programmes.
They suggested implementing complementary modules in targeted training institutes that can offer internationally accepted certificates, he added.
The taskforce laid emphasis on strengthening faculty development and curriculum updates through international collaborations, exchange programmes and leveraging the rich experience of NRB academics, he added.