A few bad apples spoiling Bida’s OSS barrel

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As the government is fervently checking out new methods to draw investment to improve monetary growth, some state bodies continue steadily to cling on to their customary negligent behaviours, effectively marring all improvement.

Case in point: the One Stop Service (OSS) world wide web portal of Bangladesh Expenditure Development Authority (Bida).

The portal aims to greatly help investors fast implement business projects by centralising delivery of necessary regulatory, compliance, and value-added services through an individual window.

By bringing such simplicity in doing business, targets are for Bangladesh to rise to a double-digit spot from the existing three-digit one in the associated World Lender index.

But investors are yet to totally enjoy the advantages of such services returning online when it comes to dealing with two specialists - the Department of Environment (DoE) and any office of the Registrar of Joint Inventory Companies and Firms.

The providers are in charge of checking applicants' records. If everything is in order, a no-objection certificate or approval is provided.

But that has not necessarily been the circumstance, alleged the program receivers. 

There have been times when investors were asked to physically visit government offices and present very difficult copies of documents. Some providers are also certainly not being provided within the time officially stipulated.

They have even been compelled to pay speed money, despite providing all necessary records, to bring a stop to officials intentionally wasting time by bringing up unjustified excuses.

These allegations came up when The Daily Star recentlytalked to more than 30 businesspeople and organizations who received services from the OSS.

However, there is no such hassle in availing solutions supplied by Bida itself.

Bida launched the OSS in February 2019. It now provides 41 providers and aims to incorporate as many as 150 offerings from 35 companies, all to facilitate purchase processes in the united states.

Until December 31 this past year, it said to have delivered 25,019 services.

Surprising, it is yet to get any application over land registration or perhaps mutation and gas interconnection.

Businesspeople said at this time they get electric power connections within a couple of weeks as the period officially stipulated was 14 workdays.

According to World Bank Group's flagship report CONDUCTING BUSINESS 2019, investors in 2018 had a need to spend 150 days to obtain a new electric power connection whereas over 400 days in 2014.

As per rules, investors are actually to get environment clearance certificates against fresh market or running industry ranging from seven days and 45 workdays, according to the category and submission of required records.

But the the truth is a long way off from it.

Md Idris Sheikh, managing director of Hasem Jute Mill on Faridpur, said he needed around half a year to achieve the clearance from the DoE, that too with the support from a department official who's his friend.

He did not need to spend any extra money.

Seyed Kaiser Ali, handling director of Metro Ispat, said he was able to get authorized with Bida within several days.

But he had to spend months to achieve the environment certificate, despite providing all necessary documents. He said the environment clearance certificate was mandatory for the metal industry.

AHM Irfanul Huq, managing director of Luminous Pharmaceuticals, said the hassles had slightly reduced in comparison to that earlier when wanting to get authorized with Bida and the registrar business office.

On the other hand, he said his personnel and the ones of a consultancy firm he availed offerings from had to visit the registrar office despite applying through the OSS.

Relating to him, the situation was that the OSS only connects investors to different government service providers rather than providing the certificates or clearances itself.

He said there is still too little efficiency when it found the federal government offices providing providers through verifying documents rather than being able to get rid of looking for hard copies of paperwork.

Md Alkas Ali, owner of Parua LPG and Refuelling Station on Sylhet, said he got authorized with Bida easily without incurring any extra cost. He actually availed an import certificate through the OSS within seven days.

But he spoke of experiencing to wait for some days to acquire a clearance from the Bangladesh Fire Provider and Civil Defence, believing it had something regarding physical inspections.

One entrepreneur, seeking anonymity, accused the registrar business office of intentionally dillydallying merely to get him to shell out speed money.

All the investors said that they had to supply hard copies of files.

Bida Executive Chairman Md Sirazul Islam said these were serious about increasing in the simple doing business position and were working to ensure an investment-friendly environment.

He said the individual sector was adding to the expansion of the country's economy and because of this, there was a need to improve the ease of conducting business and create a good business-friendly environment.

Regarding the allegation, this individual acknowledged that this sort of irregularities had been somewhat present.

He said the registrar office had even wished to delay execution of the integration with Bida for providing online providers. 

Bida took steps so that the applicants do not need to physically go to the registrar business office, he said.

"The aim of the OSS is to accomplish apart with hassles of physical appointments and remove bribe culture from public provider entities," he noted.

Bida is putting focus on digital services together with queries and objections, responses against that have to end up being provided online by the assistance providing entities themselves, which is an integral area of the ease of conducting business, Islam said.

On being described by The Daily Superstar that there is no portal found in the OSS webpage to file specific complaints and look for redress, Islam promptly called over officials and asked to include it.

Jibon Krishna Saha Roy, director (OSS and regulatory reform) at Bida, said investors who deal with any bureaucratic hassle in virtually any office should tell them.

Bida will intervene and take necessary methods, he said. 
Source: https://www.thedailystar.net

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