The New Nation - Internet Edition

DCC, JICA to hold workshop on workers' Safety and sanitation

A workshop on "Host Workers' Safety and Sanitation" will be held at Mohanagar Natto Moncho in the city's Gulistan area on Sunday. Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will jointly organise the workshop to raise the awareness of cleaners on safety and sanitation to prevent injuries and sickness related to waste management. DCC has decided to distribute safety gears, first aid kit and working manual for cleaners in various wards for their safety during the workshop, said a press release of JICA. A Safety and Sanitation Committee will also be formed, consisting members of conservancy officers, conservancy supervising inspectors, conservancy inspectors and cleaners to investigate and identify issues related to safety and sanitation of the cleaners' working environment and to discuss and implement measures to improve the present safety and sanitation situation. DCC, which has been working to improve the overall solid waste management of Dhaka city with the assistance of JICA since 2000, will organise the workshop under JICA project for strengthening of solid waste management in Dhaka city.

IMF suggests govt to raise public wages in phases

BUSINESS REPORT

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has suggested the caretaker government to raise public wages in phases to keep its fiscal burden manageable.

Increases in pay scales will need to be phased in to make the fiscal burden manageable, IMF said in Bangladesh -- 2008 Article IV Consultation: Concluding Statement.

The IMF's Article IV Consultation, received here on Friday, made the suggestion following the government's recent announcement that it would form a National Pay Commission soon for increasing the wages of the public sector employees.

Inflation is likely to return to double digits in July and remain there throughout the 2008-09 fiscal year (from July 2008 to June 2009) because of high credit growth and government spending, emerging wage pressures, soaring international commodity prices, said the IMF.

Novo Nordisk selects Citycell's CDMA2000 1X Voice service

BUSINESS REPORT

Citycell has recently signed a corporate agreement with Novo Nordisk Pharma Private Limited which is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies of the country.

The agreement signing ceremony was held at Citycell's Head Office at Mohakhali, Dhaka.

According to the agreement, Novo Nordisk will avail Citycell's CDMA2000 1X Voice service and enjoy exclusive corporate rates and priority service from Citycell.

Novo Nordisk has selected Citycell as its service provider for Citycell's improved network coverage, voice clarity, uninterrupted service and other facilities.

A Rajan Kumar, Managing Director of Novo Nordisk and Michael Seymour, CEO of Citycell signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations.

M Saiful Islam, Executive, Finance, S Syanzida Shermin, Executive, Human Resources of Novo Nordisk and Dr Anand Rajasingham, Head of Marketing, Sharif Shah Jamal Raj, Manager, Corporate Sales, Hasnayen Mutakabbir, Executive, Corporate Sales of Citycell were also present at the signing ceremony.

Islami Bank's authorised capital to be raised to Tk 1,000 crore

BUSINESS REPORT

The authorised capital of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) has been proposed to be raised from Tk 5 billion (Tk 500 crore) to Tk 10 billion (Tk 10,000 crore) by amending Memorandum and Articles of Association of the bank subject to the approval of Bangladesh Bank and by shareholders in an extraordinary general meeting (EGM).

The face value of the bank's share will be Tk 100 each instead of existing Tk 1,000 and the market lot will be 10 (ten).

The EGM of the bank will be held on August 29, 2008 at 9:00 am and the record date for EGM is July 29, 2008.

The decisions have been taken in a meeting of the board of directors of the bank at the IBBL head office in the city on Thursday with its Chairman Abu Naser Muhammad Abduz Zaher in the chair.

IBBL foreign and local directors including Yousif Abdullah Al-Rajhi, representative of Al-Rajhi Company for Industry and Trade in KSA, Abdulhameed Fouad Al-Khateeb, Jeddah in KSA, Wasim Ahmed, representative of Islamic Development Bank, Jeddah in KSA, and Ahmed Mohammed Thani, representative of Kuwait Awqaf Public Foundation were also present in the meeting.

The meeting evaluated the performance of the bank and expressed its satisfaction over the success and progress achieved so far and took some important business decisions.

Prime Insurance declares 12pc stock dividend: Earns gross premium income of Tk 144.24m and pre-tax profit of Tk 27.99m

BUSINESS REPORT

Prime Insurance Company Ltd has declared a stock dividend at the rate of 10 per cent.

The dividend was declared at the 12th annual general meeting (AGM) of the company held on July 17 in Dhaka.

The AGM was presided over by Ferdous Amin, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, which was attended by a large number of shareholders.

Among the Directors, Shah M Hasan, Monzoor ul Karim, Alhaj Abdul Gaffar Dubash, Mizanur Rahman Mostafa, Abu Hasan Khan, Representative Directors KM Kaiser, S. A. M. Hossain, Aynul Haque, Md Shamsul Alam, Managing Director (cc) Ferdous Ara Chowdhury (Nimmi), Md Nurul Islam Mollah, DMD and Company Secretary (cc) Sharif Mahmud were also present in the meeting.

According to the Financial Statement, the company achieved gross premium income of Tk 144.24 million and earned a pre-tax profit of Tk 27.99 million. The shareholders present in the meeting highly appreciated the overall performance of the Company.

Ferdous Amin, in his brief address welcomed the shareholders and thanked them all for extending their wholehearted support and co-operation towards over-all progress of the company.

He also appreciated the Management for their excellent performance they had shown and advised them to continue their efforts to become one of the leading general insurance companies in Bangladesh.

Agrani Insurance approves 7pc cash dividend for 2007

BUSINESS REPORT

The 8th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Agrani Insurance Company Limited was held on July 16 at Bangladesh Institute of Administration and Management (BIAM) Auditorium in Dhaka.

Zaker Ahmed, FCA, Chairman presided over the meeting. Vice Chairman, Directors and Managing Director (cc) were also present at the AGM which approved 7 per cent cash dividend for the year 2007.

A considerable number of shareholders attended the meeting and expressed their satisfaction for the overall performance of the company. In the meeting, the Directors and Auditors Reports and the Audited Accounts for the year ended December 31, 2007 were unanimously considered and adopted.

Standard Bank holds managers' confce

BUSINESS REPORT

The Half-Yearly Managers' Conference-2008 of Standard Bank Limited (SBL) was held at a city hotel recently with SBL Managing Director (CC) SA Farooqui in the chair.

SBL Board of Directors Chairman Kazi Akramuddin Ahmed attended the conference as the chief guest.

Also present at the conference were SBL executive committee Chairman Kamal Mostafa Chowdhury, directors Shaikh Mesba Uddin and Sahazada Syed Nizamuddin Ahmed, sponsors Ferozur Rahman, Mohammed Abdul Aziz and Monowara Begum, Deputy Managing Director Md Nazmus Salehin and Board Secretary AFM Nizamul Islam Chowdhury along with all branch managers and executives of the head office of the bank.

The SBL chairman hailed the branch managers, executives, officers and employees of the bank for their active participation, commitment and contribution to the growth and success of the bank.

The chairman said the bank had been able to achieve the confidence of its clients and patrons and handle substantial volume of deposits, loans and advances as well as exploring of import and export businesses.

He laid emphasis on preparedness to face the global challenge in the upcoming days and also on offering state-of-the-art technology-based banking service to the clientele.

The SBL managing director advised the branch managers, executives and officers to become more serious in their profession for meeting the aspirations of the board of directors through achievement of the target for the year 2008.

Russian co to buy Teletalk

Russian companies are gaining a foothold in the Bangladesh mobile market with Sistema, the holding company of the Russian mobile operator OAO Mobile TeleSystems, negotiating with the Bangladesh government to buy the country's smallest cellular operator (in terms of subscribers) the state-run TeleTalk Bangladesh.

A spokesperson at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications says, "Sistema is negotiating with the government for the acquisition of mobile network Teletalk, which has been roughly valued at US$300-500 million."

In another statement, Kirill Semenov, Head of the international press office at AFK Sistema says, "It is true. We are interested in the Bangladeshi market, especially in its mobile phone sector. The mode of entry to that market is under discussion as well. We will continue to work on our plans to get into Bangladesh."

He adds, "There is a negotiating process going on and Sistema has already signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bangladeshi authorities."

That's as may be but, the Teletalk services in Bangladesh are in a mess.

Indeed the system and network has deteriorated to such an extent in recent months that many Teletalk complain of the practical impossibility of getting any connectivity at all, never mind actually being able to make a mobile phone call. As a result, many subscribers have been giving up on the carrier and abandoning their pay-as-you-go SIM cards.

According to the Bangladesh Telecommunication and Regulatory Commission, TeleTalk had 1.07 million subscribers as of June this year but that number is in massive decline. Sistema will have to rebuild both the network and customer confidence if it is to have any impact in the Bangladesh market.

Allahabad Bank's net profit slips 53 per cent

Allahabad Bank's net profit dropped by almost 53 per cent to Rs 93.36 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2008, down from Rs 200.40 crore in the corresponding quarter of last year.

The drop was mainly on account of provisioning made for Rs 264.08 crore owing to the increase in yield of government securities (G-sec), according to KK Agarwal, Executive Director of the bank.

"The yield on G-secs has moved up due to inflation and various other factors. The bank has to therefore provide depreciation of Rs 264.08 crore," he said, speaking to newspersons while declaring the bank's quarterly results, here on Friday.

The total investment portfolio of the bank was at Rs 24,974 crore. Fifty eight per cent of the total investment portfolio was in the Held-to-Maturity category while the rest was in Available for Sale category, he said.

Total income increased by 20.48 per cent at Rs 1,849.63 crore (Rs 1,535.10 crore). The total business stood at Rs 1, 23,451 crore, up from Rs 1,03, 378 crore.

Deposits grew by 16.53 per cent at Rs 73,207 crore while advances went up by 23.87 per cent at Rs 50,244 crore. The net interest margin was at 2.75 per cent and the bank plans to maintain it at those levels. Net non-performing asset was at 0.75 per cent (0.76 per cent).

Radisson Hotel appoints EAM and Director of Sales and Marketing

Radisson Water Garden Hotel Dhaka has recently promoted Saeed Ahmed as EAM and Director of Sales and Marketing of the hotel with effect from July 1.

Prior to this assignment, he was the Director of Sales and Marketing of the hotel.

Saeed has been working in Radisson Water Garden Hotel Dhaka for the last four years and has been a key member of the hotel team and Carlson Hotels Worldwide--Asia Pacific's regional sales and marketing team. Saeed's career spans over 18 years, including ten years in hospitality industry in senior level management positions.

An MBA from the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Saeed has a strong sales and marketing background and has worked in different international and local corporations before joining the Radisson Water Garden Hotel Dhaka.

He is credible and respected by his peers, customers and prospects as an experienced, successful and knowledgeable hotel industry professional in Bangladesh.

Radisson Water Garden Hotel Dhaka is part of a major expansion program being undertaken across Asia pacific by US based Carlson Hotels Worldwide. The hotel is owned by Sena Hotels Development Limited.

Rasna seeks JVs to expand global footprint

Rasna, an India-based soft drinks concentrate maker with a presence in about 40 countries, is looking at further expanding its global footprint by entering into the former Soviet Union countries and African nations. To enter these markets, the firm wants to set up joint ventures with local companies.

However, the company has refused to divulge any details pertaining to companies that it is in discussions with for setting up joint ventures.

Piruz Khambatta, chairman and managing director of Rasna, said: 'There is a lot of potential still unexplored, especially in CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States that includes former Soviet states and Russia) and Africa. We want to have our manufacturing units there as most of these countries have a high customs duty of around 60 per cent.'

Earlier in 2008, the company established two international manufacturing plants, one each in Bangladesh and Egypt.

Rasna also said that it will expand its Devil's Workshop fast food chain and introduce fruit drinks concentrate in sachets to consolidate in the mass market segment.

ACME introduces Hepamilk

The ACME Laboratories Ltd, one of the top pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh, has recently launched a new herbal product HEPAMILK.

The generic name of it is Milk thistle and the botanical name is Silybum marianum.

It is world wide famous as hepatoprotective herbal medicine. HEPAMILK is indicated as adjunctive treatment in chronic inflammatory liver diseases i.e., hepatitis (viral of alcoholic), hepatic cirrhosis etc and also indicated in toxic liver damage. It is effective and safe for both male and female.

It is available as 87.5 mg capsule and each box contains 2x10s capsules in blister strips. The indicative price of HEPAMILK is Tk 5 per capsule.