Uncertainty in global trade poses risks for Bangladesh: Experts
They also stressed the need for strengthening trade negotiation to safeguard national interests post-LDC graduation
Illustration: TBS
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Illustration: TBS
Highlights
- Global trade system increasingly uncertain, experts warn
- WTO rules losing effectiveness, complicating negotiations
- Trade talks shifting from rules-based to power-based
- Bangladesh forms Trade Negotiation Pool, strengthens capacity
- It starts trade negotiations with partners thru FTAs, others
- LDC graduation demands skilled negotiators, strategic planning
Growing uncertainty in the global trade system, coupled with the weakening effectiveness of World Trade Organization rules, could complicate future trade and negotiations for countries like Bangladesh, experts warned at a dialogue today (7 September).
They also underscored the urgency of strengthening Bangladesh’s trade negotiation capacity to safeguard national interests post-LDC graduation.
During the dialogue, titled “Reflections and Way Forward: Building National Capabilities in Trade Negotiations”, they emphasised that building a skilled pool of trade negotiators is vital to sustain exports, diversify markets, and protect Bangladesh’s interests in an increasingly competitive global trading system.
Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin spoke as chief guest at the dialogue. Photo: Courtesy
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Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin spoke as chief guest at the dialogue. Photo: Courtesy
Previously, trade negotiations followed WTO rules and many other practices, said Mohammad Abdur Razzaque, chairman of Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID). “Now the negotiations sometimes can be rather power-based, than rules-based.”
The commerce ministry organised the event with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), under the Transformative Economic Policy Programme (TEPP), financed by the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
“We are seeing a trade environment that is becoming more complex and political,” Razzaque said, adding, “We have seen that the entire global multilateral trading system has weakened… and the protection mechanisms for some countries, like Bangladesh, have been compromised.”
Photo: Courtesy
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Photo: Courtesy
Bangladesh is set to graduate from the group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in 2026. To ensure a smooth transition, the country has begun trade negotiations with various partners through Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and other arrangements.
The Ministry of Commerce has recently formed a “Trade Negotiation Pool” for this purpose.
Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman said that negotiations are currently underway with Japan, South Korea, and Singapore.