Bangladesh
9. Corruption
Corruption remains a serious impediment to investment and economic growth in Bangladesh. While the government has established legislation to combat bribery, embezzlement, and other forms of corruption, enforcement is inconsistent. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is the main institutional anti-corruption watchdog. With amendments to the Money Prevention Act, the ACC is no longer the sole authority to probe money-laundering offenses. Although it still has primary authority for bribery and corruption, other agencies will now investigate related offenses:
- Bangladesh Police (Criminal Investigation Department) – Most predicate offenses.
- NBR – VAT, taxation, and customs offenses.
- Department of Narcotics Control – Drug related offenses.
The current Awami League-led government has publicly underscored its commitment to anticorruption efforts and reaffirmed the need for a strong ACC, but opposition parties claim that the ACC is used by the government to harass political opponents. Efforts to ease public procurement rules and a recent constitutional amendment that reduced the independence of the ACC may undermine institutional safeguards against corruption. Bangladesh is a party to the UN Anticorruption Convention, but it has still not joined the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Public Officials.
Corruption is common in public procurement, tax and customs collection, and regulatory authorities. Corruption, including bribery, raises the costs and risks of doing business. By some estimates, off-the-record payments by firms may result in an annual reduction of two to three percent of GDP. Corruption has a corrosive impact on the broader business climate market and opportunities for U.S. companies in Bangladesh. It also deters investment, stifles economic growth and development, distorts prices, and undermines the rule of law.
Resources to Report Corruption
Mr. Iqbal Mahmood
Chairman
Anti-Corruption Commission, Bangladesh
1, Segun Bagicha, Dhaka 1000
+88-02-8333350
Email: chairman@acc.org.bd
Contact at “watchdog” organization:
Advocate Sultana Kamal
Chairperson
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB)
MIDAS Centre (Level 4 & 5), House-5, Road-16 (New) 27 (Old), Dhanmondi, Dhaka – 1209
+880 2 912 4788 / 4789 / 4792
Email: edtib@ti-bangladesh.org, info@ti-bangladesh.org, advocacy@ti-bangladesh.org
13. Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Portfolio Investment Statistics
Table 2: Key Macroeconomic Data, U.S. FDI in Host Country/Economy
| Economic Data | Year | Amount | Year | Amount | USG or International Source of Data: BEA; IMF; Eurostat; UNCTAD, Other |
| Host Country Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ($M USD) | 2017 | $249,700 | 2016 | $221,400 | https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=BD |
| Foreign Direct Investment | 2017 | $2,200 | 2016 | $2,300 | UNCTAD World Investment Report 2018 |
| U.S. FDI in Partner Country ($M USD, stock positions) | 2017 | $460 | 2016 | $458 | https://www.bea.gov/international/factsheet/factsheet.cfm?Area=631 |
| Host Country’s FDI in the United States ($M USD, stock positions) | 2017 | $2 | 2016 | N/A | https://www.bea.gov/international/factsheet/factsheet.cfm?Area=631 |
| Total Inbound Stock of FDI as % host GDP | 2017 | 0.86% | 2016 | 1.05% | https://unctad.org/en/pages/PublicationWebflyer.aspx?publicationid=2130 |
Table 3: Sources and Destination of FDI
| Direct Investment from/in Counterpart Economy Data | |||||
| From Top Five Sources/To Top Five Destinations (US Dollars, Millions) | |||||
| Inward Direct Investment | Outward Direct Investment | ||||
| Total Inward | $14,091 | 100% | Total Outward | $328 | 100% |
| United States | $3,316 | 23.5% | United Kingdom | $84 | 25.6% |
| United Kingdom | $1,559 | 11.1% | China, P.R.: Hong Kong | $76 | 23.2% |
| Singapore | $934 | 6.6% | Nepal | $44 | 13.4% |
| Australia | $860 | 6.1% | India | $42 | 12.8% |
| South Korea | $811 | 5.8% | United Arab Emirates | $31 | 9.5% |
| “0” reflects amounts rounded to +/- USD 500,000. | |||||
Table 4: Sources of Portfolio Investment
| Portfolio Investment Assets (June, 2018) | ||||||||
| Top Five Partners (Millions, US Dollars) | ||||||||
| Total | Equity Securities | Total Debt Securities | ||||||
| All Countries | $3,584 | 100% | All Countries | $10 | 100% | All Countries | $3,574 | 100% |
| -United States | $587 | 16.4% | Pakistan | $10 | 100% | United States | $587 | 16.4% |
| Germany | $581 | 16.2% | N/A | N/A | N/A | Germany | $581 | 16.3% |
| United Kingdom | $383 | 10.7% | N/A | N/A | N/A | United Kingdom | $383 | 10.7% |
| Spain | $235 | 6.6% | N/A | N/A | N/A | Spain | $235 | 6.6% |
| France | $201 | 5.6% | N/A | N/A | N/A | France | $201 | 5.6% |