Bangladesh has designated the semiconductor industry as a national priority sector and introduced tax breaks, startup funding and other incentives to expand the country’s role in the rapidly growing global market.
The semiconductor market is projected to approach $1 trillion by 2030, while some experts expect it could reach that level sooner. More than 3,000 Bangladeshi engineers, researchers, managers, entrepreneurs and other semiconductor professionals work at major companies and universities in the United States, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Europe.
“The government is considering the semiconductor sector as a national priority sector,” a government representative said. “The development of this sector is likely not the job of a single ministry or institution; it is a joint national mission.”
Bangladesh has begun work in semiconductor design, verification, training, embedded systems, power electronics and advanced packaging. Several domestic institutions have also entered international markets.
The government has withdrawn taxes and duties on raw materials needed for semiconductor manufacturing and is working to introduce cash incentives for export earnings from design services.
It has also allocated an annual startup grant of 500 crore Bangladeshi taka, approximately $40.6 million, for entrepreneurs and innovation. Distribution of the funding has begun.
Officials are also offering bonded warehouse facilities, modernizing existing high-tech parks and planning a new biotech park.