Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has directed that all ports in Bangladesh remain operational 24 hours a day to simplify business and accelerate import-export activities. The instruction was issued at a high-level meeting with leading businesspeople and industrial entrepreneurs at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaon, Dhaka, on Saturday. Mahdi Amin, an adviser to the prime minister and spokesperson for the office, disclosed the decision while briefing journalists after the meeting.

Private-sector representatives had proposed round-the-clock commercial services related to imports and exports at Chattogram Port or Dhaka airport. In response, the prime minister immediately instructed all relevant government offices to coordinate and ensure 24-hour services at every port in Bangladesh. Amin said the measure would make import-export operations faster and more dynamic.

The meeting also discussed private-sector challenges, the investment environment, business expansion, and ways to attract more investment to economic zones under BEZA and BEPZA. Participants considered how to simplify existing complications in those areas. The government said it would provide full policy support to the private sector, while business representatives expressed satisfaction with immediate decisions on policy proposals raised at the meeting.