Bangladesh-Myanmar bilateral cooperation needs co ordinated efforts
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
Karar Mahmudul Hassan in the first of a three-part article
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina officially visited Myanmar early last month with a delegation of 90 members. Included among them was a 30-member business team. During the formal official talks between the two heads of State, the Myanmar President assured the Bangladesh Prime Minister of their readiness for an early resumption of the repatriation process of the already cleared list of refugees under the aegis of the UNCHR. President Sein of Myanmar also assured that his country would take back all Rohingya refugees after verifying them and as per the criteria that were earlier agreed upon between the two countries. Against such an assurance, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told Myanmar President Sein that a joint working group could be established to resolve the issue permanently.
Besides, wide-ranging issues including cooperation in energy sector, creating direct road and air links and enhancing trade cooperation in education and tourism sectors came up for discussions between the two sides on the occasion. An agreement was signed on the formation of a joint commission at the level of foreign ministers for overseeing and coordinating all bilateral issues in an institutional framework. And another notable development was the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the establishment of a joint business council involving the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Union of Myanmar Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMCCI).
During the official-level talks, the Bangladesh Prime Minister expressed desire for making Bangladesh's investment in any hydropower project in Myanmar (on equity basis or as a direct purchaser), import of gas for power generation, fertilizer production and industrial manufacturing from Myanmar and development of multi-module communications system between the two countries with a view to harness the potential for truthful bilateral cooperation. President U Thein Sein of Myanmar was reported to have assured the Bangladesh side about exporting gas in the future, subject to discovery of new gas fields in its territory. He pointed out that his country had already come to an agreement with China to export gas from existing gas fields to China.
The Prime Minister (PM) of Bangladesh stressed the need for revival of direct shipping services between Chittagong - Sittwe- Yangon and Air Transport Agreement of 1977 to resume airlink between Bangladesh and Myanmar. She informed President Sein of Myanmar that 23km road construction (from Tambru frontier to Bawalibazar (Bangladesh Side) was being completed , while requesting Mr. Sein to complete 105km road from Bawali bazaar to Ryanktaw (Myanmar side) as early as possible. A 15-point joint statement issued after the bilateral talks also suggested that businessmen and entrepreneurs of both countries would make their efforts to take advantage of the opportunities for extending bilateral cooperation in the area of tourism development.
On issues of boosting trade and business between the two countries, both sides stressed the need for more interaction at not only government level but also private one. The Bangladesh business team which accompanied the PM during her visit to Myanmar want strong and progressive trade ties through appropriate formal channels, as both countries have many trade and business potential to tap. Currently, most business activities of Bangladesh with Myanmar take place mostly through informal channels due to absence of appropriate banking facilities, even though discussions and bilateral meetings between concerned representatives of both countries have been taking place for years. It is to be very seriously considered that the present civilian government of Myanmar has opened up business relations with different countries after assuming power by the beginning of last calendar year 2011. There is already a double-digit growth in trade and business of Myanmar with its neighbouring countries. But its trade relations with Bangladesh is still at its infancy. As a result, Bangladesh exported to Myanmar goods worth of $9.65 million in fiscal year (FY) 2010 - 11 when it imported goods worth $175.72 million from there.
Somehow or other, Bangladesh and Myanmar have not been able to consolidate their bilateral relations. Although there are about 10 agreements between the two countries including those in areas of land boundary management, trade, transport and prevention of narcotics, many of them are only on paper, except the border agreement, he noted.
The Bangladesh foreign minister visited Myanmar on May 16, 2009 and held official-level talks with her counterpart there. Again in January 2011, she attended the 13th Ministerial level meeting of BIMSTEC in Myanmar and on the sidelines, she reportedly discussed bilateral issues with her Myanmar counterpart.
But the people of Bangladesh remain in total darkness whether any effective follow-up action has at all been taken from the Bangladesh side. The Foreign Secretary of Myanmar had made official visits to Dhaka, the first of which took place on December 28, 2009 and again on August 24, 2011. Reportedly, the foreign secretaries of both the countries discussed how to strengthen cooperation in mutually beneficial areas. But follow-up actions on the decisions taken during all those visits and meetings, are largely absent, resulting in some sort of stagnation on carrying forward the mutually beneficial development of relations which Bangladesh does particularly needs badly for its own economic advantage.
The issue of the Rohingya refugees had cropped up in 1978 -- though it was resolved amicably within a very short time, yet the mistrust about Bangladesh did not totally diminish in among some powerful circles in Myanmar. Unfortunately, another flow of refugees from Myanmar came to Bangladesh in 1991and then again, in 1997. At present, about 38 to 40 thousand refugees (official data) are staying in Bangladesh and casual negotiations on the issue continue to drag on.
The migration of the Rohinga people to Bangladesh is a complex issue. This should, however, not be seen merely as a refugee problem, partly because many militant Rohinga groups including the Arakan Rohinga National Organization and Arakan Rohinga Islamic Front have been reportedly fighting for decades for a separate homeland in the form of a Rohingya state. And Bangladesh cannot support the secession movement in its next-door neighbouring country. Against this backdrop, both the neighbours who are earnestly trying to forge better relations may jointly develop an effective and mutually beneficial border management to prevent further flow of migration of the Rohingas to Bangladesh.
Prior to the official visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the then Commerce Minister of Bangladesh, Mr. Faruq Khan MP, along with Mr. K. B. Ahmed, President of newly formed Bangladesh-Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, officially visited a number cities of Myanmar. There they had met and discussed at length a number of bilateral trade and business issues. Besides, bilateral issues of mutual interest were also discussed with the government functionaries and officials during that time. Myanmar's Ambassador in Bangladesh Mr. U Min Lwin had played a very important role in all these official-level meetings and discussions with the representatives of businesses in Myanmar. All these have facilitated a positive outcome of the subsequent official discussions between the two heads of government.
It will be worthwhile to recall here that at a seminar held in Dhaka in June last year on "Perspective of Bangladesh Myanmar relations in the field of Trade, Commerce, Regional Cooperation and Connectivity", the Myanmar Ambassador to Bangladesh, Mr. U Min Lwin, who attended it as a special guest, had mentioned in his speech that arrangements were in the pipe-line for signing of a MOU with UMFCCI to enable the business in Bangladesh to have full assistance and cooperation from their Myanmar counterparts for fulfilling the aims and objectives of the BMCCI, which were spelt out in its Memorandum of Association.
Myanmar, as its Ambassador to Bangladesh pointed out, is rich in forest products of teak and hardwood, vast fertile land, various kinds of minerals deposits and precious stone mines, navigable river systems, mountain ranges, a long coastline with marine resources, oil and other hydrocarbon deposits, agricultural and human resources etc. In this context, Myanmar can rightly be classified "as a country with natural wealth and human resources."
With adoption of a market-oriented economic system in Myanmar in 1988, the private sector has become the main player in economic growth there. The state now emphasises on the privatisation measures and promotes the role of the private sector. This was clearly noted by the Ambassador in his address to the seminar, mentioned earleir.
Under the changed circumstances, the chambers of commerce in Myanmar have now increasing responsibilities and leading roles for the development of the private sector. For the development of increased economic cooperation and trade, better regional trade information network, dissemination of information, better stable linkages between domestic entrepreneurs and foreign businessmen are urgently required in Myanmar.
The trade sector in Myanmar has achieved an impressive growth following the pursuit of the goals and objectives of a market-oriented economic system. Its aggregate trade, in value terms, increased from about US 400 million dollars in fiscal year (FY) 1988 - 89 to US 15.28 billion dollars in FY 2010-11 and the border trade increased from about US 200 million dollars in early 1990s to US 2.13 billion dollars in FY 2010-11. The combined total trade volume in FY 2010-11 stood at US$ 17.41 billion dollars. But Myanmar-Bangladesh bilateral trade, in value terms, is still at a very low level, amounting only to US$ 136 million dollars in FY 2010-11 and the same remains overwhelmingly, to the level of US$ 125 million, in Myanmar's favour. All these were amply noted by the Ambassador of Myanmar, Mr. Min Lwin in his address to the seminar,noted earlier.
Foreign investors are now allowed to establish the enterprises in Myanmar in the form of wholly-foreign owned or joint-venture enterprises with any Myanmar counterpart. In the form of a joint venture, the capital of foreign capital should not be less than 35 per cent of equity. The minimum foreign capital to be brought into Myanmar has been notified by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC).
It is US$ 500,000 for manufacturing and US$ 300,000 for services. The law provides attractive tax incentives such as three-years' tax holiday period, beginning with the year in which the operation commences and a further tax exemption or relief for an appropriate period in case it is now considered beneficial for the State, can be extended.
Myanmar, like Bangladesh, is strategically situated and can be an effective business hub for the region. It can trade with the potential markets I the region and outside in two ways, i.e. using both sea and land routes. Moreover, regionally Myanmar also lies in a strategic position by connecting South Asia to South East Asia and the East Asia. Its locational advantage does, indeed, offer more opportunities for mutual benefits. This is the reason why, as was rightly noted by the Myanmar Ambassador to Bangladesh, that the two countries do need to make sustained efforts to promote economic and social development by strengthening their economic linkages.
About connectivity, it is to noted that the direct road link would not only facilitate promotion of bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Myanmar but also help open up a gateway to the giant market of China and the ASEAN. The agreement on direct road link between the two neighbourly countries was already signed in 2007. As the Bangladesh side proposed that the road link could be implemented by the Myanmar Army and the Bangladesh Army jointly, it is necessary to take necessary steps to review the agreement to amend it, if necessary, with mutual consent.
The discussions on the tri-nation road link connecting Bangladesh, Myanmar and China do need to continue in an effective way with emphasis given simultaneously on its implementation aspects in a systematical way. The feasibility study should, first of all, be conducted to assess the cost and benefit of constructing the road. Funding will also be an important question here.
Revitalising the relationships between the two countries on different fronts including bilateral trade, business, setting up of industries at suitable places bordering both the nations including resolving the Rohinga issue etc., calls for coordinated efforts in all inter-related fields. There has to be more pragmatic mutual understanding between the two sides at different levels through close negotiations. Pro-active steps from the Bangladesh side may go a long towards breaking the ice and moving forward consistently through appropriate follow-up actions, to tap the full potential of fruitful bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
The writer, Karar Mahmudul Hassan, FCILT is Vice President, The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and Honorary Advisor, Bangladesh Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He may be reached at e-mail: karar.hassan@gmail.com
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina officially visited Myanmar early last month with a delegation of 90 members. Included among them was a 30-member business team. During the formal official talks between the two heads of State, the Myanmar President assured the Bangladesh Prime Minister of their readiness for an early resumption of the repatriation process of the already cleared list of refugees under the aegis of the UNCHR. President Sein of Myanmar also assured that his country would take back all Rohingya refugees after verifying them and as per the criteria that were earlier agreed upon between the two countries. Against such an assurance, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told Myanmar President Sein that a joint working group could be established to resolve the issue permanently.
Besides, wide-ranging issues including cooperation in energy sector, creating direct road and air links and enhancing trade cooperation in education and tourism sectors came up for discussions between the two sides on the occasion. An agreement was signed on the formation of a joint commission at the level of foreign ministers for overseeing and coordinating all bilateral issues in an institutional framework. And another notable development was the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the establishment of a joint business council involving the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Union of Myanmar Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMCCI).
During the official-level talks, the Bangladesh Prime Minister expressed desire for making Bangladesh's investment in any hydropower project in Myanmar (on equity basis or as a direct purchaser), import of gas for power generation, fertilizer production and industrial manufacturing from Myanmar and development of multi-module communications system between the two countries with a view to harness the potential for truthful bilateral cooperation. President U Thein Sein of Myanmar was reported to have assured the Bangladesh side about exporting gas in the future, subject to discovery of new gas fields in its territory. He pointed out that his country had already come to an agreement with China to export gas from existing gas fields to China.
The Prime Minister (PM) of Bangladesh stressed the need for revival of direct shipping services between Chittagong - Sittwe- Yangon and Air Transport Agreement of 1977 to resume airlink between Bangladesh and Myanmar. She informed President Sein of Myanmar that 23km road construction (from Tambru frontier to Bawalibazar (Bangladesh Side) was being completed , while requesting Mr. Sein to complete 105km road from Bawali bazaar to Ryanktaw (Myanmar side) as early as possible. A 15-point joint statement issued after the bilateral talks also suggested that businessmen and entrepreneurs of both countries would make their efforts to take advantage of the opportunities for extending bilateral cooperation in the area of tourism development.
On issues of boosting trade and business between the two countries, both sides stressed the need for more interaction at not only government level but also private one. The Bangladesh business team which accompanied the PM during her visit to Myanmar want strong and progressive trade ties through appropriate formal channels, as both countries have many trade and business potential to tap. Currently, most business activities of Bangladesh with Myanmar take place mostly through informal channels due to absence of appropriate banking facilities, even though discussions and bilateral meetings between concerned representatives of both countries have been taking place for years. It is to be very seriously considered that the present civilian government of Myanmar has opened up business relations with different countries after assuming power by the beginning of last calendar year 2011. There is already a double-digit growth in trade and business of Myanmar with its neighbouring countries. But its trade relations with Bangladesh is still at its infancy. As a result, Bangladesh exported to Myanmar goods worth of $9.65 million in fiscal year (FY) 2010 - 11 when it imported goods worth $175.72 million from there.
Somehow or other, Bangladesh and Myanmar have not been able to consolidate their bilateral relations. Although there are about 10 agreements between the two countries including those in areas of land boundary management, trade, transport and prevention of narcotics, many of them are only on paper, except the border agreement, he noted.
The Bangladesh foreign minister visited Myanmar on May 16, 2009 and held official-level talks with her counterpart there. Again in January 2011, she attended the 13th Ministerial level meeting of BIMSTEC in Myanmar and on the sidelines, she reportedly discussed bilateral issues with her Myanmar counterpart.
But the people of Bangladesh remain in total darkness whether any effective follow-up action has at all been taken from the Bangladesh side. The Foreign Secretary of Myanmar had made official visits to Dhaka, the first of which took place on December 28, 2009 and again on August 24, 2011. Reportedly, the foreign secretaries of both the countries discussed how to strengthen cooperation in mutually beneficial areas. But follow-up actions on the decisions taken during all those visits and meetings, are largely absent, resulting in some sort of stagnation on carrying forward the mutually beneficial development of relations which Bangladesh does particularly needs badly for its own economic advantage.
The issue of the Rohingya refugees had cropped up in 1978 -- though it was resolved amicably within a very short time, yet the mistrust about Bangladesh did not totally diminish in among some powerful circles in Myanmar. Unfortunately, another flow of refugees from Myanmar came to Bangladesh in 1991and then again, in 1997. At present, about 38 to 40 thousand refugees (official data) are staying in Bangladesh and casual negotiations on the issue continue to drag on.
The migration of the Rohinga people to Bangladesh is a complex issue. This should, however, not be seen merely as a refugee problem, partly because many militant Rohinga groups including the Arakan Rohinga National Organization and Arakan Rohinga Islamic Front have been reportedly fighting for decades for a separate homeland in the form of a Rohingya state. And Bangladesh cannot support the secession movement in its next-door neighbouring country. Against this backdrop, both the neighbours who are earnestly trying to forge better relations may jointly develop an effective and mutually beneficial border management to prevent further flow of migration of the Rohingas to Bangladesh.
Prior to the official visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the then Commerce Minister of Bangladesh, Mr. Faruq Khan MP, along with Mr. K. B. Ahmed, President of newly formed Bangladesh-Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, officially visited a number cities of Myanmar. There they had met and discussed at length a number of bilateral trade and business issues. Besides, bilateral issues of mutual interest were also discussed with the government functionaries and officials during that time. Myanmar's Ambassador in Bangladesh Mr. U Min Lwin had played a very important role in all these official-level meetings and discussions with the representatives of businesses in Myanmar. All these have facilitated a positive outcome of the subsequent official discussions between the two heads of government.
It will be worthwhile to recall here that at a seminar held in Dhaka in June last year on "Perspective of Bangladesh Myanmar relations in the field of Trade, Commerce, Regional Cooperation and Connectivity", the Myanmar Ambassador to Bangladesh, Mr. U Min Lwin, who attended it as a special guest, had mentioned in his speech that arrangements were in the pipe-line for signing of a MOU with UMFCCI to enable the business in Bangladesh to have full assistance and cooperation from their Myanmar counterparts for fulfilling the aims and objectives of the BMCCI, which were spelt out in its Memorandum of Association.
Myanmar, as its Ambassador to Bangladesh pointed out, is rich in forest products of teak and hardwood, vast fertile land, various kinds of minerals deposits and precious stone mines, navigable river systems, mountain ranges, a long coastline with marine resources, oil and other hydrocarbon deposits, agricultural and human resources etc. In this context, Myanmar can rightly be classified "as a country with natural wealth and human resources."
With adoption of a market-oriented economic system in Myanmar in 1988, the private sector has become the main player in economic growth there. The state now emphasises on the privatisation measures and promotes the role of the private sector. This was clearly noted by the Ambassador in his address to the seminar, mentioned earleir.
Under the changed circumstances, the chambers of commerce in Myanmar have now increasing responsibilities and leading roles for the development of the private sector. For the development of increased economic cooperation and trade, better regional trade information network, dissemination of information, better stable linkages between domestic entrepreneurs and foreign businessmen are urgently required in Myanmar.
The trade sector in Myanmar has achieved an impressive growth following the pursuit of the goals and objectives of a market-oriented economic system. Its aggregate trade, in value terms, increased from about US 400 million dollars in fiscal year (FY) 1988 - 89 to US 15.28 billion dollars in FY 2010-11 and the border trade increased from about US 200 million dollars in early 1990s to US 2.13 billion dollars in FY 2010-11. The combined total trade volume in FY 2010-11 stood at US$ 17.41 billion dollars. But Myanmar-Bangladesh bilateral trade, in value terms, is still at a very low level, amounting only to US$ 136 million dollars in FY 2010-11 and the same remains overwhelmingly, to the level of US$ 125 million, in Myanmar's favour. All these were amply noted by the Ambassador of Myanmar, Mr. Min Lwin in his address to the seminar,noted earlier.
Foreign investors are now allowed to establish the enterprises in Myanmar in the form of wholly-foreign owned or joint-venture enterprises with any Myanmar counterpart. In the form of a joint venture, the capital of foreign capital should not be less than 35 per cent of equity. The minimum foreign capital to be brought into Myanmar has been notified by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC).
It is US$ 500,000 for manufacturing and US$ 300,000 for services. The law provides attractive tax incentives such as three-years' tax holiday period, beginning with the year in which the operation commences and a further tax exemption or relief for an appropriate period in case it is now considered beneficial for the State, can be extended.
Myanmar, like Bangladesh, is strategically situated and can be an effective business hub for the region. It can trade with the potential markets I the region and outside in two ways, i.e. using both sea and land routes. Moreover, regionally Myanmar also lies in a strategic position by connecting South Asia to South East Asia and the East Asia. Its locational advantage does, indeed, offer more opportunities for mutual benefits. This is the reason why, as was rightly noted by the Myanmar Ambassador to Bangladesh, that the two countries do need to make sustained efforts to promote economic and social development by strengthening their economic linkages.
About connectivity, it is to noted that the direct road link would not only facilitate promotion of bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Myanmar but also help open up a gateway to the giant market of China and the ASEAN. The agreement on direct road link between the two neighbourly countries was already signed in 2007. As the Bangladesh side proposed that the road link could be implemented by the Myanmar Army and the Bangladesh Army jointly, it is necessary to take necessary steps to review the agreement to amend it, if necessary, with mutual consent.
The discussions on the tri-nation road link connecting Bangladesh, Myanmar and China do need to continue in an effective way with emphasis given simultaneously on its implementation aspects in a systematical way. The feasibility study should, first of all, be conducted to assess the cost and benefit of constructing the road. Funding will also be an important question here.
Revitalising the relationships between the two countries on different fronts including bilateral trade, business, setting up of industries at suitable places bordering both the nations including resolving the Rohinga issue etc., calls for coordinated efforts in all inter-related fields. There has to be more pragmatic mutual understanding between the two sides at different levels through close negotiations. Pro-active steps from the Bangladesh side may go a long towards breaking the ice and moving forward consistently through appropriate follow-up actions, to tap the full potential of fruitful bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
The writer, Karar Mahmudul Hassan, FCILT is Vice President, The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and Honorary Advisor, Bangladesh Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He may be reached at e-mail: karar.hassan@gmail.com