Bangladesh, Canada working on increasing bilateral trade

A joint working group of Bangladesh and Canada is working on branding Bangladesh in Canada to strengthen bilateral trade and investment between the two countries.

A meeting of members nominated by the two countries discussed the issue at a virtual meeting on Tuesday, co-chaired by Md Jashim Uddin, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI), and Nuzhat Tam-Zaman, co-founder and vice-president (Consumer Health) of SinoVeda Canada Inc, a pharmaceutical company in Canada.

In a previous meeting the group identified tourism, ICT, agriculture, agri-food, education, pharmaceuticals, and renewable energy as potential sectors for collaboration. At their latest meeting, Md Jashim Uddin of FBCCI called for the inclusion of the blue economy and the plastics sector in the scope for collaboration, reads a press release. 

The FBCCI chief said Canada is one of the best countries in the world in the ocean economy and has unparalleled expertise and knowledge in the use of marine resources in a sustainable manner. Bangladesh has a 710 km long coastline with an exclusive economic zone of 200 nautical miles inside the Bay of Bengal.

"With Canadian investment, technical knowledge and assistance, Bangladesh's economy will move forward, utilising its marine resources," he added.

He said the FBCCI will submit a sector-wise report on the blue economy, plastics, and tourism, to the joint working group at the next meeting. Syed Almas Kabir, director of FBCCI, will submit a report on skill development and information technology at that meeting as well.

During the meeting, the two sides agreed to strengthen communication between the trade associations of the two countries to facilitate trade. The discussants also talked about making Canada's Rules of Origin easier to facilitate increasing the export of Bangladeshi products to Canada. Canadian participants asked for on-arrival visas in Bangladesh to make trade and investment easier.

A study report on the prospects of Bangladesh's leather, leather products, and footwear export to Canada was presented during the meeting by Md Saiful Islam, a director of the FBCCI and president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI).

Chris Dekker, president of Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership (Step) presented another report on bilateral trade enhancement.

The next meeting of the committee is scheduled to be held on 7 February.