ISLAMABAD: Additional Secretary Ministry of Commerce Bangladesh Monoj Kumar Roy has expressed dissatisfaction on trade between D-8 countries.
An Interview with Customs Today, he said that his country is not satisfied with the present volume of trade between D-8 countries. It is very low. All the members of D-8 countries are from Muslim Ummah. “We have a common religion and also common culture, and we know each other and need to increase trade,” he said.
He said that D-8 is the best forum to increase mutual trade. We are also taking necessary steps towards achieving the objectives and goals of D-8 cooperation as stated in the road-map to increase intra-trade of D-8 states to at least 15 to 20 percent of their global trade by the end of 2018. He said there is a huge growth potential both in trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) flows amongst the developing countries and believing that the D-8 member states can play a leading role progress of economy
He said the D-8 countries are agreed to expend revised offer list so that private sector finds incentive in trading and encourage remaining member states to ratify the D-8 preferential trade agreement as soon as possible.
He said in the next March I think this preferential trade agreement will going to be the implemented, and if all the members countries participated in this everyone of them may have be the win win situation. These concessions will boost to the trade amongst the D-8 countries. He said that at present trade situation between Pakistan and Bangladesh is very good. The volume of trade between two countries is very high and increasing day by day. We are considering to sit and finds the way outs that boost our trade between both countries. He said that the volume of trade between Pakistan and Bangladesh is not very much higher and the balance tilts in favour of Pakistan. Major Bangladeshi products that enter the Pakistani market include raw jute, jute goods, tea, leather, agri-products and chemical items. Bangladesh imports textile and textile products, beverages, tobacco, vegetable products, fruits, processed food and a motley of light engineering products.
Replying to a question he said that Bangladesh was offered a proposal to enter into a free trade agreement with Pakistan during the visit of Pakistani Commerce Minister in 2002. In 2008 Bangladesh government had decided to start talks for bilateral free trade agreements (FTA) with Pakistan. It is pertinent to mention here that the most of the trade experts in Bangladesh supported signing of FTA with the Pakistan, but suggested adding new products beyond those items already entitled to duty-free facilities under Safta (South Asian Free Trade Agreement Pakistan had already granted duty-free access to Bangladeshi tea and jute goods, which came into effect year 2002. Under this concession, Bangladesh was allowed duty-free export of jute and tea up to 10,000 tonnes a year to Pakistan.
