Businesses for FTA with Saudi Arabia

Staff Reporter :
The businesses of the country have urged Saudi Arabia to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) to help Bangladesh get ready for the challenges the country will face after its graduation from the least developed country category.
Md Jashim Uddin, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), made the call while speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the three-day-long Bangladesh Business Summit-2023 organised by FBCCI at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka on Saturday.
He said Bangladesh will gradually lose most of its existing preferential trade facilities, including quota- and duty-free market access to most of the developed and developing countries.
“So, I believe it could be the right time to take initiative between the two countries to sign FTA to face the post-LDC challenges and also explore the advantage of the value chains on the basis of the mutual benefits,” he added.
On the inaugural day, Bangladesh signed an agreement and 3 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Saudi Arabia and China.
An agreement has been signed with a Saudi Company to set up gas pipeline through India and Bangladesh under public-private- partnership (PPP) basis.
Besides, two MoU signed with Saudi Arabia for developing Rongpur Sugar Mills and Patenga Container Terminal, another MoU signed with China for infrastructure development.
The FBCCI also signed a MoU with China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPET), according to the organiser.
The summit, envisaged to become Bangladesh’s flagship business promotion bi-annual event, seeks to highlight Bangladesh’s economic and market strengths, and concrete trade and investment opportunities in Bangladesh, said Dr M Masrur Reaz, Technical Adviser of the sumiit.
The summit creates an opportunity for business-to-business leaders’ interaction with national and global businesses leaders, investors, policymakers, practitioners, policy and market analysts, academia, and innovators, he said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister’s Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman F Rahman said that the government is considering giving the responsibility of sea-port management to private operators with an aim to ensure improved services.
“With Japan taking charge of Matarbari port management, this project promises to be a game-changer for the nation’s economy. The year 2026 is set to be a landmark for Bangladesh’s economy as the country’s deep-sea port in Matarbari is slated to begin operations,” he said in response to a question from the moderator of the “Business Leader Panel: Bangladesh-The Big Picture” at the Bangladesh Business Summit-2023.