Bangladesh: where opportunities exist

Benozeer Ahmed ACMA, CGMA, CPA (Aust), is a Senior Manager, Business Planning and Analysis at the BRAC Bank Limited. According to him, CIMA helps to view his organisation from "both granular and helicopter perspectives". "I know how individual elements of the organisation are connected to create the whole system," he says. "I know how external forces create an impact on the way we do our business; how finance and accounting skills can be blended with business for better decision making and how information can be turned into insights that can create larger impacts. Now with CIMA I have more career options across the roles, industries and borders."

Benozeer talks about the many opportunities that exist in Bangladesh today. "Global manufacturing giants are shifting their mass production to low-wage emerging economies to compete on price," he says. "This has created opportunities for a country like Bangladesh. In this connection, CIMA accountants are better equipped to contribute to the success of the both. For example, they can help the organisation to make financially prudent decisions, drive lean manufacturing systems, manage cost strategically, improve productivity and optimise resource allocations. Beyond financial numbers, they can implement non-financial measures which are critical to business success."

Bangladesh, being a developing nation, is open to positive changes and revolution in all fields. "Bangladesh, like other emerging countries, is going to be a major manufacturing hub of large MNC," says Benozeer. "The existing supply of CMAs is not enough. MNCs and some local corporate houses are complaining about it. From my level I am engaged in the system of increasing this number in the near future in Bangladesh. I dream to build a financial training institute so that finance and accounting professionals can stay up-to-date and relevant to the world of today and the future."