Hopes high for Dhaka’s EPA with Tokyo by 2025

FE Report | Published: December 27, 2023 22:47:45

Bangladesh is expecting to sign the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Japan by December 2025 as the joint study-group report in this regard was released here on Wednesday.
After the country's graduation from the LDC status in 2026, the deal would facilitate maintaining its duty-free market access to the world's third largest economy, Senior Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh has said.
Mr Ghosh and Japanese Ambassador in Dhaka Iwama Kiminori released the study report at a joint press conference at the commerce ministry.
"The proposed EPA will be a win-win deal for both countries," the Japanese
envoy said, emphasising on further strengthening the bilateral relations, including trade and business, between the two countries.
The commerce secretary said graduation from the LDC status will definitely mark an important milestone in the history of Bangladesh and uplift the image of the country internationally.
Despite the positive outlook, he added, there is a perception and a sense of fear that the graduation would rather result in losing the preferential market access available to the LDCs, including the duty-free and quota-free (DFQF) market access and everything but arms (EBA) facility.
Considering the potential challenges, the commerce ministry has taken a policy decision to sign Free Trade Agreement (FTA) or Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with its potential trading partners for smooth transition to the post-graduation era, Mr. Ghosh said.
With an eye to sign an EPA, Bangladesh and Japan on December 12, 2022 decided to conduct a Joint Feasibility Study (JFS).
During the Japan visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in April this year, the two premiers announced to improve the bilateral relations into a strategic partnership.
Based on the declaration, the commerce ministry of Bangladesh and the Economy, Trade and industry ministry of Japan earlier signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
The joint study group had three rounds of meetings in April, July and September this year to complete the proposed deal.
According to a commerce ministry statement, 17 sectors came under the study.
The sectors are: Trade in goods, including Trade Remedies, Rules of Origin, Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation (CPTF), Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPM), Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), Trade in Services, Investment, e-commerce, Government Procurement, Intellectual Property, Competition/ Subsidies/ State-owned Enterprises, improvement of the business environment, labor, environment, transparency, cooperation and dispute settlement.
Such an EPA between Bangladesh and Japan would not only promote the expansion of trade and investment by eliminating tariffs and improving the investment environment, it would also help strengthen the political and diplomatic relations between the two countries, which play an important role in the economy of the respective regions, according to the report of JSG.
The report also mentioned that Bangladesh is now preparing to face the post-LDC graduation challenges, including trade-related ones, and has decided to conclude regional trade agreements with existing and potential trade partners to retain its market access and expansion.
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