When it comes to buying shoes, you might prefer leather shoes to other types of shoes. When paying for the shoes, you may use Fintech services like ‘bKash’ or ‘Nagad’ instead of paying in paper money.
One of your relatives or friends happens to live in a middle-east country where the price of the medicines is exceptionally higher. S/he may prefer buying medicines from Bangladesh than from those countries.
You may decide to build up a house. The design and the estimation of the infrastructure of the house to be built have become easier than ever. The development in the IT sector especially the development in the software industry has made it possible to establish a model for the house at a low cost. The software has also made it easier to build up a house with less capital. Also, the price of ceramics for the house that you might be planning to build has become affordable in recent times.
The products and services that are being mentioned above are some of the flourishing and lucrative sectors of Bangladesh. These sectors or industries have so much potential that they can contribute exponentially in no time if much focus is given.
The sector P/E is a great indicator of how an industry is growing. The higher P/E ratio indicates that the industry has growth potential. The aforementioned graph has depicted the sector P/E ratio of these five industries.
These five industries are being briefly presented below: –
The software development industry – flourishing to the next level!
From 2010 to 2020, Bangladesh has experienced a huge technological shift. To think about it from the perspective of infrastructure, computer and mobile devices are available everywhere and so the internet connectivity. The statistics of May 2019 reported that almost more than 50 percent of the population are internet subscribers. Moreover, this sector has become the interests of the youth segment of this country. And what is the linkage among all of these? The industry is expected to generate $4.6-4.8 billion by 2025, according to an extensive study done by USAID. So, it is evident that this industry holds huge potential.
The software development industry can be divided into two sections. One section is web development, making customized software, making mobile applications where Bangladesh has already made huge progress. Another section is the high potential and development sector that includes VR development, Game development etc. These two sections hold huge potential although there are some limitations in resources. However, it can still be expected that this industry will meet its maturity stage very soon.
Fintech Sector – can it be another unprecedented growth enabler of Bangladesh?
At present, we are moving towards a cashless society and the current pandemic has led to enhanced reliance on the cashless transaction. Fintech Sector is looking to serve as substitutes for the traditional money transaction process and stimulating e-wallet adoption in Bangladesh. If we talk about the Fintech start-ups from the context of Bangladesh, it is valued at $1.45 billion with a prospect to reach a $10 billion valuation. From this, it is evident that this sector has a huge potential where new investors can come and invest. The innovative Fintech approach in Bangladesh is commonly based on Mobile Financial Services (MFS). More or less, there are almost 108 Fintech start-ups in Bangladesh. Among them, bKash, SureCash, Nagad, mCash, and UCash are considered the exciting Fintech start-ups in our country.
Nevertheless, lack of technological and financial literacy are the primary hindrances to develop a viable environment for Fintech start-ups. Alleviating these shortcomings might make it easier for this industry to reach the maturity stage.
Tanning Industry – an industry that deserves much attention
The tanning industry is being established in Bangladesh for a long period and the country alone generates 3-4% of the world’s leather. It has been a lucrative sector for the supply of leather as well as the manufacturing of leather products. Moreover, the labor resources are already in abundance. This industry alone is responsible for generating $54.69 annually and also, creates a great number of employment opportunities. There is a huge prospect that it can contribute to a great extent to the economy.
However, it is unfortunate that there aren’t enough resources for preserving the leather. Consequently, in every Eid-al-Adha, it is being aired that a significant amount of leather got perished due to the lack of resources for preserving them. The lack of resources has been the biggest obstacle for this industry to be in a maturity stage despite contributing for a long time. This industry requires more resources so that it can contribute more to the economy.
Pharmaceutical Industry- Profit or Life?
The pharmaceutical sector is currently one of the most technologically advanced industries in Bangladesh. In the last two decades, this sector has developed at a commendable rate. The pharmaceutical sector is expected to surpass almost $6 billion by 2025. Knowledge, innovative ideas, and skills from the professionals are the primary factors for the development in this industry. Around 300 pharmaceutical companies are actively operating at this moment. Bangladesh only imports 3% of drugs and the remaining 97% of the drugs come from the local companies. Positive developments in this particular sector have enabled our country to export medicine to various countries. During this Covid-19 pandemic, several pharmaceutical companies across the globe have successfully been able to invent Covid-19 vaccines. To keep pace with those countries, Globe Biotech, a Bangladeshi pharmaceutical company, has claimed a breakthrough in developing the Covid-19 vaccine. By overcoming certain obstacles, this sector can be an efficient exporting sector of Bangladesh.
Ceramics Industry- Bangladesh’s untapped huge potential in the export of ceramics
The ceramic sector of Bangladesh is a flourishing sector. The recent growth in this industry represents that this sector can become one of the largest sources of foreign currency achievers. From the inception, this industry has contributed a lot to the manufacturing sector. This manufacturing industry mainly produces sanitary wares, tiles, and tableware. There are more than 60 ceramics manufacturers throughout Bangladesh. In the recent fiscal year, this sector achieved USD 68.8 million through exports after meeting 80% of its domestic demand. EU, USA, and the Middle-East are the active export destinations. However, government patronage is much needed by this sector. Reducing tax on imported raw materials will lead to a decrease in the production cost and improve the export of ceramics as well.
These five industries have shown a well-proven performance and huge potentiality in recent years. But circumventing some difficulties like lack of necessary resources and financial aid may reward everlasting growth and a high valuation that our RMG sector has already achieved. If these industries can make it to the maturity stage, they can be a huge development driver in the economy.
