Badrul Ahsan :
Bangladesh’s exports to India face setback despite taking a number of initiatives in recent years, exporters said.
People involved with the bilateral trade said, lack of product diversification, non-tariff barriers, and inadequate banking facilities along the bordering areas of the two countries are hindering the prospective exports to India.
The government took some major steps in 2012 to reduce the huge bilateral trade gap between the two countries, but the initiatives could hardly gear up Bangladesh’s exports to the neighbouring destination.
India came up with some trade improvement measures after the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Bangladesh in September 2012. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also visited India in January 2010 in a bid to increase bilateral trade.
After the visit by the Indian PM, India allowed duty-free access of all Bangladeshi products to its market, except 25 alcoholic and drug items, to narrow the trade gap.
But in 2013, India imposed 12.5 percent countervailing duty on the export of
garments, which is why the overall shipment to India is on the decline.
Besides, a renowned kids’ wear brand in India — Lilliput — had not cleared payments worth $5 million to twenty-two garment exporters of Bangladesh, even after five years of the shipment, which has also dented confidence of local exporters.
Non-acceptance of certification from Bangladeshi institutions by the Indian authority also emerged as another trade barrier to the local exporters, insiders said.
Bangladesh mainly imports basic commodities such as rice, cotton, onion, fabrics, chemical products and dyes, limestones, cattle, electricity, machinery and pulses from India. As a result, India has become a top source of Bangladesh’s imports.
Moreover, it is also believed that India exports goods worth around $5 billion to Bangladesh annually through informal channels.
Mostafa Abid Khan, Director of Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute, said that non-tariff barriers were not the major problems that hindered Bangladesh’s exports to India.
“The demand for some major export items such as jute and jute bags has declined in the Indian market as production of these items went up in India in recent times,” Abid Khan said.
Though apparel is a major exportable item of Bangladesh, India is not a good destination for such products, he said.
Abid Khan said, India’s exports are higher as Bangladesh imports mainly basic commodities from India.
Bangladesh’s imports from India were recorded at around US$ 6.4 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 and $6.03 billion in FY-2013-14 and $4.78 billion in the previous year, according to data from the commerce ministry.
On the other hand, Bangladesh’s exports to India were worth around 405 million in FY 2014-15, $456.63 million in 2013-14 and $563.97 million in the previous year.
Abdul Matlub Ahmad, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) told the New Nation on Thursday that it is the non-tariff barriers that are hurting exports to India.
The Indian side does not accept certification from BSTI (Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution) certificates.
“This is why, we cannot export many products to India. Now both the sides are working on it. We are trying to upgrade our testing lab quality to a international level with the help of some European experts,” Matlub Ahmed said.
“Once we succeeded to do that, I believe the export to India will see a big boost and it is not a distant dream that export earning from the next door neighbour will cross multi billion US Dollar,” he said.
Bangladesh’s exports to India face setback despite taking a number of initiatives in recent years, exporters said.
People involved with the bilateral trade said, lack of product diversification, non-tariff barriers, and inadequate banking facilities along the bordering areas of the two countries are hindering the prospective exports to India.
The government took some major steps in 2012 to reduce the huge bilateral trade gap between the two countries, but the initiatives could hardly gear up Bangladesh’s exports to the neighbouring destination.
India came up with some trade improvement measures after the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Bangladesh in September 2012. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also visited India in January 2010 in a bid to increase bilateral trade.
After the visit by the Indian PM, India allowed duty-free access of all Bangladeshi products to its market, except 25 alcoholic and drug items, to narrow the trade gap.
But in 2013, India imposed 12.5 percent countervailing duty on the export of
garments, which is why the overall shipment to India is on the decline.
Besides, a renowned kids’ wear brand in India — Lilliput — had not cleared payments worth $5 million to twenty-two garment exporters of Bangladesh, even after five years of the shipment, which has also dented confidence of local exporters.
Non-acceptance of certification from Bangladeshi institutions by the Indian authority also emerged as another trade barrier to the local exporters, insiders said.
Bangladesh mainly imports basic commodities such as rice, cotton, onion, fabrics, chemical products and dyes, limestones, cattle, electricity, machinery and pulses from India. As a result, India has become a top source of Bangladesh’s imports.
Moreover, it is also believed that India exports goods worth around $5 billion to Bangladesh annually through informal channels.
Mostafa Abid Khan, Director of Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute, said that non-tariff barriers were not the major problems that hindered Bangladesh’s exports to India.
“The demand for some major export items such as jute and jute bags has declined in the Indian market as production of these items went up in India in recent times,” Abid Khan said.
Though apparel is a major exportable item of Bangladesh, India is not a good destination for such products, he said.
Abid Khan said, India’s exports are higher as Bangladesh imports mainly basic commodities from India.
Bangladesh’s imports from India were recorded at around US$ 6.4 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 and $6.03 billion in FY-2013-14 and $4.78 billion in the previous year, according to data from the commerce ministry.
On the other hand, Bangladesh’s exports to India were worth around 405 million in FY 2014-15, $456.63 million in 2013-14 and $563.97 million in the previous year.
Abdul Matlub Ahmad, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) told the New Nation on Thursday that it is the non-tariff barriers that are hurting exports to India.
The Indian side does not accept certification from BSTI (Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution) certificates.
“This is why, we cannot export many products to India. Now both the sides are working on it. We are trying to upgrade our testing lab quality to a international level with the help of some European experts,” Matlub Ahmed said.
“Once we succeeded to do that, I believe the export to India will see a big boost and it is not a distant dream that export earning from the next door neighbour will cross multi billion US Dollar,” he said.
