The interim government has decided to establish a factory to manufacture military hardware to meet the needs of the armed forces and strengthen national defence capability.
Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun announced the development at a press conference at the Foreign Service Academy on Monday afternoon.
He said the factory would be set up in Chattogram’s Mirsarai, under the initiative of Bangladesh Machine Tools Factory.
Ashik said the creation of a “Defence Industrial Zone” would be included in BIDA’s master plan.
“A Defence Industrial Zone will be established to make Bangladesh a participating country in the military and defence industry,” he said.
The decisions were taken at a meeting of the governing board of the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA), chaired by Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus.
Ashik briefed the media later in the afternoon alongside the Chief Advisor’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.
Explaining the rationale, Ashik said: “In today’s global security reality, having our own production capacity in the defence industry is extremely important.
“Recent wars have shown that the real shortage is not high-tech weapons but ammunition and basic equipment.”
The arms factory will be built on land in Mirsarai that had been allocated for the Indian Economic Zone.
Ashik said 323.75 hectares of land had been earmarked for that project, but the zone was later cancelled, leaving the land unused.
“Bangladesh will not produce high-tech weapons. On the battlefield, shortages are not of high-tech arms or fighter jets, but of bullets and components like tank axles.
“The Bangladesh Army will produce such equipment based on its needs. Details will be known after contracts are finalised,” he said.
“This is not just about exports — it must be seen as an issue of national sovereignty and security,” Ashik added.
The press conference also announced a series of decisions, including the establishment of a 263-hectare Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Anwara, Chattogram.
Ashik said local and foreign investors would be able to manufacture, re-export and store raw materials there.
“A policy decision has been taken to establish the FTZ, and the necessary laws and rules will be reformed,” he said.
The decisions were taken at governing board meetings of BIDA, BEZA and the Moheshkhali Integrated Development Authority (MIDA), chaired by Yunus.
“These zones will create jobs in southern districts and play a major role in the economy — eventually becoming its heart,” Ashik said.
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