3 Foreign Firms To Invest US$ 49 Million At BEPZA Mirsarai Economic Zone

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3 Foreign Firms To Invest US$ 49 Million At BEPZA Mirsarai Economic Zone

With a US$ 37 million investment plan, a leading Sri Lankan apparel maker is among the first batch of export-oriented companies that have leased plots in the Mirsarai economic zone in Chattogram. Four firms – three foreign and one local have signed deals with the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) to set up factories to manufacture apparel, garment accessories, camping equipment and shoe accessories at the BEPZA economic zone in the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar in Chattogram. The companies altogether will plough in around US$ 50 million and employ 23,453 people, it is learnt. The firms are Sri Lanka-based Univogue Garments Company Ltd, US-based Campex (BD) Limited, Chinese Fengqun Composite Material Company (BD) Ltd, and Bangladeshi TexTrim Labels (BD) Limited. Md Hafizur Rahman, BEPZA Economic Zone project director, said Sri Lankan Univogue Garments will invest around US$ 37 million to produce woven bottoms and woven jackets. With a more than US$ 2 million investment plan, Chinese Fengqun Composite will set up a shoe accessory-making and packaging industry at the economic zone. US-based Campex (BD) Limited will set up a tent, tent accessories and outdoor garment manufacturing industry with an investment of US$ 10 million, while Bangladeshi TexTrim will set up a garment accessories and paper converting industry with an investment of US$ 1.27 million. Under Bepza, there are now eight EPZs across the country – Chattogram EPZ, Dhaka EPZ, Mongla EPZ, Ishwardi EPZ, Comilla EPZ, Uttara EPZ, Adamjee EPZ, Karnaphuli EPZ. Ali Reza Mazid, member (Investment Promotion) at BEPZA, said some 453 industries have been set up at the EPZs with a total investment of US$ 6 billion. The industries employ around 5 lakh people, while 66% of them are women. BEPZA now contributes about 20% to the country's total annual exports. The Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar is located on about 30,000 acres of land in Mirsharai and Sitakunda upazilas of Chattogram and Sonagazi upazila of Feni.