A generous businessman in Bangladesh

Tarique Ahmed, born on 25 July 1966 in Sirajgonj District, is a Bangladesh's investor, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is one of the directors and shareholders of a large private industrial conglomerate in Bangladesh.  Tarique is the third son of Mofizuddin Talukder, ex-industrialist and former independent Member of Parliament and a rare breed of benignity of octogenarian - Jahan Ara Begum.

Educated in M. Com (Management) from Dhaka University, the 54-year-old is tapping this growing demand from both ends of the consumer spectrum. At the high end, he along with his dedicated brothers does his export of fashion brands of apparels across the globe.

Bangladesh sits in an important role because it is one of the leading countries within Southeast Asia. Ahmed's objective: Creating a community of trustworthy businesses; setting standards for market place trust; encouraging and supporting best practices; celebrating marketplace role models, denouncing substandard marketplace behavior; and enhance the image of Bangladesh's enterprises and entrepreneurs globally.

Internationally famed motivator Archie Griffin talked about the three Ds that made him so successful: desire, determination, and dedication. Those words sound to him so directly and so powerfully that he has kept in his mind. He has carried those words in his inward soul for years as a reminder of who he wants to be and what he wants to stand for.

But those are only part of the equation; he has aspired to be the kind of person that others wanted to have on their team, that others have wanted to follow. Tarique doesn't want to be a role model, but he has naturally become a role model amongst his circle, irrespective of work-places, school, college, health-care, charitable foundations…

He will always be grateful that his first role models - his parents - provided his siblings and he has grown up in an environment to be truthful and honest. It does not matter what you are up to as long as you are able to be straight about it. They taught him to learn from his mistakes and take responsibility for his actions. A good role model is honest with the people around them and creates that safe space for them to be honest, too. That leads to a powerful level of trust, which is the bedrock of relationship.

We all admire and respect righteous people. After all, they are the true role models and the ones that inspire us every day. But how many of us actually possess true integrity? Integrity is having a strong set of ethical principles, being able to tell the truth no matter the consequences, admitting to a wrong even if you could get away without doing it. He does have all those attributes.

The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.

Contrast that with the person who cannot be trusted as a person of integrity. Warren Buffet, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway said it best, "In looking for people to hire, look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy.  And if they don't have the first one, the other two will kill you."  A person's dishonesty will eventually catch up to them. It may not be today, and it may not be for many years, but you can rest assured that at some point there will always be a reckoning.

Tarique Ahmed is amazing, dedicated servant of business and kind servant of poor people by helping setting up school, college and hospital and many more to serve them at an affordable cost in Sirajgong, Bangladesh who has made us all extremely proud and done extra ordinary work for the country, some even losing their lives while performing their duty, but never taking the easy way out. Well yippee! We salute this true hero.

Highly accomplished self-employed business person with a verifiable track record of managing complex manufacturing and exporting high quality apparels worldwide having long standing business relationship with the world class readymade garment retailers exceeding expectation of the clients.

Practiced in clarifying business requirements, performing gap analysis between goals and existing procedures and skill sets, and designing process and system improvements to increase productivity and reduce costs. Extensive experience in the implementation of Financial Accounting, Employee Relationship Management, and Partner Management systems in a large organization/ group of companies.

Under the dynamic and able leadership of Tarique Ahmed and his mellowed siblings, his exalted business conglomerate -M&J Group has now become a reputed multi-million-dollar industrial group in Bangladesh having a long-standing business relationship with the overseas world class readymade garment buyers. But he expects and demands the best he has to offer by always keeping human values top of mind.

Social activities are a part and parcel of his life while he does business; he believes real business quality cannot be achieved unless considering responsibilities for its social, ethical and environmental impacts for his customers, employees and the world we are all living in; social responsibility that we undertake is not about only compliance with the minimum legal requirements; it is about improving the living and working quality for all concerns by trying to achieve the above standards.

As an essential part of his company's core values, he naturally undertakes the responsibility to help people aiming to improve their living and working quality. Buyers' code of conduct is strictly being followed in all areas with strong emphasis to human rights, occupational health and safety issues.

Adherence to all local and international compliances as regards to work environment, physical environment and welfare of work forces are a must for him to the core. In-house doctors provide round the clock medical services. Child care rooms for the working mothers are provided. Free lunch for employees is provided to ensure proper dietary intake. Work forces' voices are being heard and considered through Workers Participation Committee (WPC).

He is the co-founder of Khokon Charitable Foundation (KCF) - named after the deceased brother of the owning family of the company was set up in July 2007 in Sirajgong. KCF aims to help the people whose lives are dominated by poverty, illiteracy, disease and other handicaps.

With multifaceted interventions, this foundation strives to bring about positive changes in the quality of life of the rural poor of Sirajganj District in Bangladesh. With this view in mind, KCF has already started helping the people of Haluakandi in Sirajgong, the village where the founder of the organization late Mofiz Uddin Talukder was born.

Founder member of Khokhon Memorial Hospital (KMH) and the following are the core areas where KMH would like to concentrate by allocating its resources: Medicare facilities; a-200 bedded Hospital along with a Nursing Training Institute which is running at Sirajgonj and a Day Clinic equipped with qualified Doctors is also in full swing operation there.

Medicare facilities like arrangement for the pregnant women, children and elderly people are already in operation. All registered people have access to qualified doctors and medicines for free of costs. Occasional eye camps are also being set up to help people with cataract and other eye complications. A monthly allowance is given for a number of old aged and handicapped people.

Pre-schooling facility has been established for those who traditionally remain outside of formal schooling. Children below 6 years of age are entitled to use this facility for free of costs. Other Activities: awareness building campaign and support; to use arsenic free drinking water; to use sanitary latrine; to learn basic hygiene issues; a forestation program; and for family planning.

As co-founder of Abdus Salam Memorial Trust Fund, named after the deceased brother of the owning family of the business house, was set up in 1984. This fund is being used to provide 10 scholarships to students of the department of Soil, Water and Environment of Dhaka University.

8 students of Honors' classes (2 students from each year, from 1st year through 4th year) and 2 students of Masters class will be eligible to receive a handsome amount per month for a period of one year based on their results. Also, there is a provision for a Gold Medal to be awarded to the student who obtains the highest marks in the Honors' final examination.

He and his siblings inspired by their mother of magnanimousness, established 'Haji Korop Ali Memorial Degree College'in 1970 at Jamtoil, Kamarkhand, Sirajgonj. It is a full- fledged Degree College with Honors' Course in the Graduate level in different disciplines. Currently, the College has got enrollment of 4000 students of different disciplines. It is a renowned College in that area. He is also Chairman of Governing body of Mofizuddin Talukder Memorial High School of Sirajganj.

Be the reason someone smiles. He is the someone for which the reason someone feels loved and believes in the goodness in people. This is evenly found for people both in his or their business organizations and in their large-hearted institutions.

Wealth may primarily be a power unlike any other, but it is also a responsibility. He is a most generous businessman, who is using his financial success to make an impact on the Sirajgong's misfortunate people issues.

For about three decenniums, he and his siblings have been a custodian for the dreams of many hapless people by turning their hardships into opportunity in Sirajgong District... He and their organizations have blazed a new way for philanthropy in Bangladesh by not deploying funds into education purpose only, as is the norm, but devising a more innately kind disposition approach to charity under his octogenarian kind-hearted mother - Jahan Ara Begum's direction.

One of the country's most revered businessmen, Tarique Ahmed carries the profits, discipline and efficiency from his or their businesses, and shows us that family line is not an impediment to ethics.

He knows wealth comes with huge responsibility and is best deployed for the larger public interest. So, he is a businessman and social worker. While many speak of corporate culture, few speak of charitable culture with such Tarique is a trailblazer as a business leader and philanthropy icon, he leads a simple life.

Through their benevolent foundations, he and his family members drive social development projects. He is a graceful person to do the eudemonia of people from where his root lies. Tarique Ahmed is profoundly honored by all in the organizations he has been running along with his sibs because of his true human values that he possesses all along.


The writer is an independent
political observer who writes on politics, political and
human-centered figures, current and international affairs