Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in January announced light engineering as the "product of the year" in an attempt to bring special attention to the sector so that it increases the country's foreign exchange reserves through the export of various goods.
Afterwards, the industries ministry decided to set up light engineering industrial parks in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Jashore, Bogura and Narsingdi to reach the growing domestic sector to its full potential.
Firms in the sector are now providing support to the industrial, agricultural and construction sectors by manufacturing a wide range of spare parts, castings, jobs with computer science degree and dices, oil and gas pipeline fittings and light machinery, said Md Abdur Razzaque, president of Bangladesh Engineering Industry Owners Association (BEIOA).
Various electrical products such as sockets, cables and electrical fans are manufactured by the light engineering sector with domestic suppliers accounting for 48 to 52 per cent of the country's demand, which was previously met through imports.
The market size for light engineering equipment and spare parts was about Tk 26,000 crore in 2019, he said, adding that this value stood at Tk 20,000 crore a decade ago.
The Business Promotion Council, operating under the commerce ministry, estimates that local light engineering industries produce 3,815 types of machinery, spares and accessories.
An assessment by Bangladesh Investment Development Authority said more than 90 per cent of light engineering industries sell their wares locally.
It lists the sector as an important area for investment owing to its potential in both domestic and foreign markets.
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