Bangladesh Trade Body Promotes Tie-ups With Malaysia To Grow Semiconductor Industry

By Shakir Husain

HYDERABAD, Oct 8 (NNN) --  The Dhaka-based Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI) is seeking linkages with Malaysian entities to grow Bangladesh's talent pool in the semiconductor industry.

Opportunities exist for deeper cooperation with Malaysia in technology and skills development as Bangladesh aims to build a US$1 billion semiconductor export industry by 2030, the BMCCI said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Bangladesh needs industry-oriented training, qualified trainers, practical exposure and stronger connections between universities and semiconductor companies. This is where Malaysia's experience can provide an important advantage," it said.

A BMCCI delegation led by its president Mohammad Anwar Shahid held meetings with Malaysian semiconductor industry players in Kuala Lumpur recently.

The discussions with MIMOS Bhd president and group chief executive Saat Shukri Embong focused on the renewal and implementation of the BMCCI- MIMOS memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in August 2025.

"Among the key initiatives under discussion are a pilot semiconductor curriculum involving Bangladeshi engineering universities, a train-the-trainer programme, student training in industry-relevant semiconductor skills, and a potential joint industry or research and development pilot initiative," the BMCCI statement noted.

Bangladesh has about 700 chip designers, 1,200 semiconductor engineers, and produces more than 20,000 graduates annually in the computer science and electrical and electronics branches of engineering, as per a BMCCI research.

Bangladesh aims to train 10,000 engineers in semiconductor design over the next five years as part of its efforts to develop the industry.

"Bangladesh has already demonstrated that it can develop capabilities in semiconductor design, but the next stage requires us to build a stronger ecosystem around that talent.

“Our cooperation with Malaysia is about creating a practical bridge between Bangladesh’s engineers, universities and emerging semiconductor companies and Malaysia’s established technology and industry ecosystem," Anwar Shahid said.

His talks with the Advanced Semiconductor Academy of Malaysia (ASEM) focused on semiconductor talent training, train-the-trainer programmes and university-industry collaboration.

The BMCCI has set up a committee to promote semiconductor cooperation with Malaysia and implement its initiatives with Malaysian partners.

--NNN