Lanka - B'desh trade up by 80% - Rishad Bathiudeen

Sri Lanka - Bangladesh bilateral trade is on an upward trend. "In 2011 Lanka-Bangladesh bilateral trade rose to $ 22 Mn. This is an 83% increase from 2007 trade levels," said Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen of Sri Lanka on November 28.

Minister Bathiudeen was addressing the new High Commissioner designate of Bangladesh in Sri Lanka Mohammed Sufiur Rahman, who made a courtesy call on him at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce in Colombo.

Rahman, an MBA from Dhaka University, has previously served at Bangladeshi missions in New Delhi, Geneva and Islamabad and was also a Director in the SAARC Secretariat in Kathmandu. Rahman had also played the lead role in organising the Colombo Process Meeting in 2011.

"We are keen to expand our trade volumes with Sri Lanka. Bangladesh has no Free Trade Agreements with any other country so far and therefore we are inexperienced in this regard. That does not mean we will not be able to do one with Sri Lanka.

In fact, the concept of Sri Lanka - Bangladesh FTA, is under examination. But before going to an FTA and as a start, I believe that we could make a list of products from both sides rather than an umbrella FTA and start trading them with special tariff concessions or even tariff free, subject to further negotiations," Rahman said to Minister Bathiudeen.

"I believe that there is strong, unrealised trade potentials between the two countries," Rahman stressed.

"I believe that your FTA intentions are very good and promising," responded Minister Bathiudeen. "And we believe that your arrival would strengthen the follow-up of a Joint Economic Commission between the two countries," he added.

The fourth Sri Lanka-Bangladesh Joint Economic Commission sessions were successfully held in Dhaka in Bangladesh on March 8. The sessions, revived after almost two decades, resulted in effective renewal of bilateral trade cooperation. Minister Bathiudeen led Sri Lanka's national delegation to Dhaka in March.

"We see a big convergence of interests between the two countries and we now want to focus on maritime connectivity and people to people contacts with Sri Lanka. We want to re-commence the feeder service between Colombo and Chittagong, perhaps using 15,000-20,000 tonne range vessels," Rahman stressed.

According to the Department of Commerce of Sri Lanka, improvements have been recorded during the last 4-5 years in Sri Lanka - Bangladesh bilateral trade. Sri Lanka's exports to Bangladesh have increased by around 150% during the period 2006-2011.

Similarly, the value of imports from Bangladesh has also increased by 100% in 2011 compared to 2010.

Among our top exports to Bangladesh are Cotton, Mineral fuels, Mineral oils and products of their distillation, bituminous substances, modified starches, glues, enzymes, miscellaneous chemical products, special woven fabrics and textile fabrics.