BD proposals to Sri Lanka sent

Bangladesh has sent proposals to Sri Lanka for signing a coastal shipping agreement between the two countries aiming to boost bilateral trade and commerce, officials said.     
The proposals that Dhaka has sent to Colombo include standard of procedure, classification of cargo vessels and their insurance and number of ports of call.  
The ministry of shipping (MoS) sent the proposals through the ministry of foreign affairs to the Sri Lankan government recently seeking their opinions in this connection.
"We sent our proposals to the shipping ministry of Sri Lanka. We hope they will inform us about their opinions soon relating to signing the coastal shipping agreement," MoS Joint Secretary Nasir Arif Mahmud told the FE.
He said they are expecting to get Sri Lanka's opinions by October next. After getting their opinions, a delegation from the MoS will visit Sri Lanka in November next.
The official said before finalising the agreement the shipping ministry officials of both the countries will pay 'home and away' visits to see the ports of call and other infrastructure facilities of their respective sides for commissioning the coastal shipping line.  
He said Bangladesh, in its proposals, mentioned Chittagong and Mongla sea ports and Narayanganj river port as ports of call.
"They (Sri Lanka) will visit our ports of call … and similarly we will also visit theirs too," the official said.
Earlier Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at a meeting in Dhaka agreed to move ahead for signing a coastal shipping agreement aiming to boost bilateral trade and investment between the two countries.
The meeting titled 'Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Joint Working Group (JWG)' on maritime connectivity through coastal shipping was  held on April 30 last at the MoS.  
And to push the move forward, the two countries have also agreed to form a Joint Study Group (JSG) comprising five members from each country.
The JSG will examine the pros and cons and give suggestions for signing the coastal shipping agreement between the two countries.
Mr Mahmud said the JSG of both the countries will exchange views prior to signing the deal.
The coastal shipping agreement between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will ensure benefits for both the countries. If Bangladeshi vessels use Colombo port on their way to Europe or the United States of America (USA), then it will reduce time significantly, which will help save production time for manufacturers.
During the meeting Sri Lanka offered priority berthing, higher productivity, handling of empty containers, and special rebate for the port handling charges for Bangladeshi vessels.
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka had earlier signed a shipping agreement in 2011 aiming to improve maritime connectivity, exchange of knowledge to facilitate counter piracy, maritime health and safety issues.
Once the coastal shipping agreement is signed between the two countries, it will facilitate movement of medium-sized Bangladeshi vessels of 3,000-4,000 dead weight tonnes (DWT) between Chittagong and Colombo ports.
At present Bangladeshi vessels having capacity of 1,000-1,200 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) operate between the two ports.
A move is also underway for signing coastal shipping agreements with India and Myanmar, according to the MoS.
Coastal shipping in the Bay of Bengal region has promising possibility if availability of cargo can be ensured. It (coastal shipping) can be a reliable or alternative solution to regional shipping activity and trade. This will minimise the operating cost and could contribute to grow regional sea-borne trade.

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