Interim Government Approves Four Ordinances, Amends Data Protection Rules
The interim government has approved four ordinances, including the Personal Data Protection (Amendment) Ordinance 2026. The approval came at a meeting of the Advisory Council held on Thursday (January 8) at the Chief Adviser’s Office in Tejgaon, chaired by Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus.
Among the other ordinances approved at the meeting were the draft and policy approval of the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (Amendment) Ordinance 2026 and the Supreme Court Secretariat (Amendment) Ordinance 2026. In addition, the Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation Ordinance 2026 and the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC-3), prepared by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, received retrospective approval.
The information was disclosed at a briefing held at the Foreign Service Academy following the meeting by the Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary, Shafiqul Alam.
Shafiqul Alam said that amendments to the Personal Data Protection Ordinance were made by taking into account concerns raised by international technology companies, particularly regarding data localisation. Under the revised provisions, data storage within the country will now be mandatory only for critical information infrastructure. Certain relaxations have been introduced for personal data, and for companies, provisions for imprisonment have been replaced with financial penalties. He expressed hope that these changes would have a positive impact on foreign investment and cloud-based services in Bangladesh.
Regarding the Shilpakala Academy Amendment Ordinance, he said the number of departments has been increased to nine. These include theatre, film, photography, dance and performance art, music, fine arts, research and publication, new media, and cultural branding and festival production. Provisions have also been added to ensure representation of marginalised communities on the academy’s board, aimed at promoting cultural diversity and inclusion.
On the Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation Ordinance 2026, the press secretary said the 1959 Forest Industries Development Corporation Ordinance has been updated to reflect contemporary needs. The new framework emphasises sustainable use of forest resources while ensuring environmental conservation, along with product diversification, showroom establishment, and opportunities for joint ventures. He also noted that the corporation earned a pre-tax profit of Tk 530 million in the last fiscal year and posted a profit of Tk 60 million in the rubber sector for the first time.
Speaking on NDC-3, Shafiqul Alam said Bangladesh’s greenhouse gas emissions stood at 202.04 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2022 and could rise to 418.40 million tonnes by 2035. Under NDC-3, a target has been set to reduce emissions by 84.97 million tonnes—26.74 million tonnes through domestic efforts and an additional 58.23 million tonnes subject to international support.
Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Professor Dr Syedur Rahman and Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder were also present at the briefing.
DBTech/FBO/EK/OR
