Assuring all government support, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia Sunday asked private entrepreneurs from home and abroad to come forward to reap the advantage of an ever-expanding market potential of hotel business in…
Assuring all government support, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia Sunday asked private entrepreneurs from home and abroad to come forward to reap the advantage of an ever-expanding market potential of hotel business in Bangladesh by investing in the hospitality industry.
She made the call when inaugurating Radisson Water Garden Hotel Dhaka, a five-star hotel, on the Airport Raod near Cantonment Rail Station. The PM said Radisson Water Garden is a new entry into the list of 5-star hotels in Bangladesh and believed this hotel would play an important role in catering to increasing numbers of foreign guests visiting Dhaka.
She also believed that this hotel would make significant contribution to flourishing country`s tourism sector and attracting local and foreign entrepreneurs and investors. The high-society hotel will open to the public from February 11. The eight-storied hotel with 206 rooms, including five suites, situated on more than seven acres of land, is owned by Sena Hotel Development Limited (SHDL) and managed by Carlson Hotels Asia Pacific.
SHDL was formed in 1995 by the joint-venture partners Bangladesh Army Welfare Trust and UK-based firm Associated Building Design Limited for building and operating hotels and other businesses in Bangladesh . In year 2000, the company was made a fully Bangladesh Enterprise of Army Welfare Trust (AWT) and Sena Kalyan Sangstha (SKS) with 80 percent and 20 percent shares respectively, according to the Radisson Hotel brochure. The Radisson Water Garden Hotel is just five kilometers off Zia International Airport and adjacent to the diplomatic zone in the city`s luxuriant Gulshan-Baridhara-Banani enclave.
Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Moeen U Ahmed, who is chairman of the board of directors of SHDL, Paul Kirwin, president, Carlson Hotels Asia Pacific, and Army Adjutant General Maj Gen Md Matiur Rahman, vice-chairman of the board of directors of SHDL, also spoke at the inaugural function.
Ministers, diplomats, Chiefs of Navy and Air Force, civil and military high officials and distinguished personalities attended the inaugural function. Addressing the function, the Prime Minister expressed her happiness knowing that small contributions made by the members of Bangladesh Army from the money earned through participation in UN Peacekeeping Missions have been pooled together by Sena Kalyan Trust for building this imposing 5-star hotel. The effort was supplemented through partial financing by the Sena Kalyan Sangstha as well as a few welfare-oriented projects. Begum Zia observed that this noble endeavour on part of the members of Bangladesh Army would remain as a worthy example for emulation by others.
These initiatives are undoubtedly laudable that the funds generated from this hotel would be spent on welfare of the families of martyred, deceased, disabled and distressed army members, especially those who have retired, as well as assistance will be provided for their treatment and for the education of their children Prime Minister Khaleda specially mentioned the two areas where Bangladesh has been acclaimed internationally–successful participation by the country`s Armed Forces in the UN Peacekeeping Missions, and Bangladesh`s innovative and pioneering role in worldwide expanding and flourishing micro-credit programmes for alleviation of poverty.
It is a happy coincidence that I am opening the Radisson Water Garden Hotel this noon and would be attending the concluding function of the International Micro-credit Year in the evening today, she told the function. Khaleda felt proud as her government has been involved in these two initiatives in a big way from their very inception and they are still rendering multifarious assistance for their advancement. I am optimistic that alongside achieving business successes, this hotel would play a significant role in the economic development of Bangladesh by encouraging foreign investment, the PM observed.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
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