Bangladesh will seek from the United Kingdom (UK) additional trade benefits after the latter's exit from the European Union (EU), officials said.
Presently, Bangladeshi goods enjoy duty-free and quota-free market access to the UK under EU's Everything but Arms (EBA) scheme on preferential treatment to trade.
On June 23 last year, nationals of Great Britain voted in a referendum for breaking away from the decades-old continental bloc, EU. At this point countries enjoying trade benefit in the UK under EU's EBA scheme were afraid of losing the preferential treatment.
However, the British trade officials recently assured Bangladesh of continuing with all the existing trade benefits after the Brexit.
A senior official at the ministry of commerce (MoC) told the FE the UK is one of the major export destinations by virtue of duty-and quota-free market access over there. In fiscal year 2015-16 Bangladesh exported goods worth US$3.2 billion to the UK, which accounted for 11.2 per cent of country's total export.
He said in a recent meeting with Bangladesh high commission officials in London, the head of trade and development of the Department for International Development (DFID), Paul Walters, said the present UK government is pro-development and intends to support the LDCs in improving their social status with UK aid-and trade-support scheme.
Mr Walters said their government was considering retaining all existing benefits accorded to the least developed countries, and going beyond the current trade facilities.
The MoC officials said as the UK administration hinted at going beyond the current trade facilities, Bangladesh is now preparing to submit a proposal seeking additional marketing facilities.
In this regard, the MoC is now preparing a proposal in consultation with the stakeholders which will be submitted to the British government soon. The MoC last week held a meeting with trade experts, representatives of chambers and associations concerned and asked them to submit soon in writing their proposals to be cobbled together in a memo.
According to trade officials the effectiveness and success of a preferential scheme depends on three factors -- product coverage, depth of preference, and rules of origin. The present EBA scheme has 99 per cent product cover, 100 per cent depth of preference and quite flexible rules of origin.
They said the MoC is now considering seeking policy support, capacity building, technical support for ensuring sanitary and phyto-sanitary standards, improvement in social compliance, intellectual property rights etc., in line with what are extended under the generalised system of preferences in the EBA scheme.
Contacted over phone Friday, additional research director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem told the FE the government needs to take into consideration three areas while negotiating with the UK for any benefit after Brexit.
First, he said, the government has to decide whether it will start negotiation as a member of the club of world's least developed countries (LDCs) or bilaterally. It also needs to know the issues the UK will take into consideration in trade negotiations with other LDC or non-LDC countries after completion of the process of Britain's exit from the EU.
Mr Moazzem said the UK may consider addition of various conditionalities in case of granting something like EBA-Plus facility on goods export from Bangladesh.
On product-specific preferences, he said, the government may need to know from stakeholders what additional benefit required with regard to RoO and regional cumulation as it is seeking facilities more than what are granted under EBA.
In the emerging era of abandoning multilateralism by major western countries, the UK is considering bilateral free trade deals with a number of countries, including India and China, which are major competitors of Bangladeshi products in the UK, he said.
It, he presumes, may diminish Bangladesh's trade preferences in Britain. During discussion, Bangladesh should request the UK to take into consideration LDCs' trade benefit in its bilateral deals with the developing countries.
Mr Moazzem said Bangladesh's products had been enjoying free-movement facility in UK's ports while entering the EU states. The government can request the UK for continuation of the transit facility after Brexit.
He also pointed out that non-resident Bangladeshis living in the other EU states had the scope to work in the UK before the Brexit referendum. And Dhaka can demand continuation of the facility alongside seeking favourable conditions for students and jobseekers, he said about the renegotiations with London.
syful-islam@outlook.com
© 2026 - All Rights with The Financial Express
