Foreign secy-level talks with Myanmar begin Dec 29
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Nazmul Ahsan
The two-day foreign secretary-level talks between Bangladesh and Myanmar are scheduled to begin in Dhaka on December 29 next on issues ranging from trade to energy cooperation, officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoF) said.
The MoF at an inter-min isterial meeting, held Wednesday last finalized the issues that Bangladesh would pursue at the upcoming bilateral meeting. Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes presided.
Around 30 issues have been identified for the talks.
The visit of five-member Myanmar delegation, led by its foreign secretary, will be a follow-up one. Foreign Minister Dipu Moni paid a three-day visit to Myanmar in May this year.
Establishing a direct air route between Dhaka and Yangon, eliminating problems relating to business visa, introducing the direct letters of credit(L/C), and reducing bilateral -trade gap are some of the major issues to be discussed between the two foreign secretaries, sources said.
Another most important area for discussion will be the possibility of establishing a hydroelectric plant in Myanmar, sources said. In the last Bangladesh-Myanmar joint trade council meeting, Bangladesh requested Myanmar to consider establishment of a hydroelectric power plant in the Rakhaine State under a joint venture. Myanmar side agreed to discuss the matter in the upcoming foreign secretary level meeting.
Dhaka is expected to attach the highest importance to the issue of hydropower plant as the country is in dire need of electricity, sources said.
The issue of importing gas from Myanmar to Bangladesh has been included in the agenda. However, details of gas-import issue could not be known.
Establishing a direct road link between Myanmar and Bangladesh is the priority not only for the two neighbours but also for many regional countries, an official in the foreign ministry said. Both the countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding in April, 2004 in this respect. Later, the communication ministers of both countries signed an agreement allowing establishment of a road link between Bangladesh and China through Myanmar.
But due to fund constraints and other problems, much progress could not be made particularly on the Myanmar side. There could be some development at the coming foreign-secretary level talks about the road link, sources said.
The proposed road link now could be a part of the Asian highway, said a communication ministry official, adding the fund constraint no longer exists as far as the construction of the Asian highway is concerned since a number of donor agencies including the Asian Development Bank has shown interest to finance the projects.
Bilateral trade between the two neighbouring countries has been taking place under the general trade agreement and border trade agreement signed in 1973 and 1994 respectively. Trade between the two countries takes place mostly under the provisions of border trade arrangement. The two-way trade volume is very low and the balance is tilted to Myanmar.
Dhaka's prime agenda at the meeting will be to request Yangon to increase import from Bangladesh. Currently, exporters and importers of both the countries face problems due to the absence of direct L/C opening opportunity between banks of the two countries. Since Myanmar is not member of International Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country follows strict foreign exchange related regulations, trade officials said.
The scheduled banks of Bangladesh usually open L/C with Myanmar banks via third country banks. As a result transaction costs and time turn out to be very high. To facilitate trade, a decision of examining and devising of a mechanism for opening L/Cs directly between the two countries was taken in 2007.
"We will raise the L/C issue seriously,' a top MoF official told the FE on Wednesday.
Another agenda of the meeting will be the problems of business visa issued from Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka. Bangladeshi businessmen get only 14 days' visa and that allows them to travel only the bordering Rakhaine State of Myanmar. Moreover, with one single entry in the border pass, they are not allowed to move beyond Maundough.
For example to go to Sittwee, the main centre of business in the Rakhaine state, Bangladeshi business people need to go Maundough first and then apply again for proceeding towards Sittwee, sources in the business circle said.
Other major remaining issues for the meeting include fertiliser buy back, border trade, repatriation of Myanmar refugees, demarcation of land boundary, delimitation of maritime boundary, coastal shipping link, cooperation in tourism, border fencing, issuance of border pass and cooperation in agricultural sector.
The two-day foreign secretary-level talks between Bangladesh and Myanmar are scheduled to begin in Dhaka on December 29 next on issues ranging from trade to energy cooperation, officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoF) said.
The MoF at an inter-min isterial meeting, held Wednesday last finalized the issues that Bangladesh would pursue at the upcoming bilateral meeting. Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes presided.
Around 30 issues have been identified for the talks.
The visit of five-member Myanmar delegation, led by its foreign secretary, will be a follow-up one. Foreign Minister Dipu Moni paid a three-day visit to Myanmar in May this year.
Establishing a direct air route between Dhaka and Yangon, eliminating problems relating to business visa, introducing the direct letters of credit(L/C), and reducing bilateral -trade gap are some of the major issues to be discussed between the two foreign secretaries, sources said.
Another most important area for discussion will be the possibility of establishing a hydroelectric plant in Myanmar, sources said. In the last Bangladesh-Myanmar joint trade council meeting, Bangladesh requested Myanmar to consider establishment of a hydroelectric power plant in the Rakhaine State under a joint venture. Myanmar side agreed to discuss the matter in the upcoming foreign secretary level meeting.
Dhaka is expected to attach the highest importance to the issue of hydropower plant as the country is in dire need of electricity, sources said.
The issue of importing gas from Myanmar to Bangladesh has been included in the agenda. However, details of gas-import issue could not be known.
Establishing a direct road link between Myanmar and Bangladesh is the priority not only for the two neighbours but also for many regional countries, an official in the foreign ministry said. Both the countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding in April, 2004 in this respect. Later, the communication ministers of both countries signed an agreement allowing establishment of a road link between Bangladesh and China through Myanmar.
But due to fund constraints and other problems, much progress could not be made particularly on the Myanmar side. There could be some development at the coming foreign-secretary level talks about the road link, sources said.
The proposed road link now could be a part of the Asian highway, said a communication ministry official, adding the fund constraint no longer exists as far as the construction of the Asian highway is concerned since a number of donor agencies including the Asian Development Bank has shown interest to finance the projects.
Bilateral trade between the two neighbouring countries has been taking place under the general trade agreement and border trade agreement signed in 1973 and 1994 respectively. Trade between the two countries takes place mostly under the provisions of border trade arrangement. The two-way trade volume is very low and the balance is tilted to Myanmar.
Dhaka's prime agenda at the meeting will be to request Yangon to increase import from Bangladesh. Currently, exporters and importers of both the countries face problems due to the absence of direct L/C opening opportunity between banks of the two countries. Since Myanmar is not member of International Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country follows strict foreign exchange related regulations, trade officials said.
The scheduled banks of Bangladesh usually open L/C with Myanmar banks via third country banks. As a result transaction costs and time turn out to be very high. To facilitate trade, a decision of examining and devising of a mechanism for opening L/Cs directly between the two countries was taken in 2007.
"We will raise the L/C issue seriously,' a top MoF official told the FE on Wednesday.
Another agenda of the meeting will be the problems of business visa issued from Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka. Bangladeshi businessmen get only 14 days' visa and that allows them to travel only the bordering Rakhaine State of Myanmar. Moreover, with one single entry in the border pass, they are not allowed to move beyond Maundough.
For example to go to Sittwee, the main centre of business in the Rakhaine state, Bangladeshi business people need to go Maundough first and then apply again for proceeding towards Sittwee, sources in the business circle said.
Other major remaining issues for the meeting include fertiliser buy back, border trade, repatriation of Myanmar refugees, demarcation of land boundary, delimitation of maritime boundary, coastal shipping link, cooperation in tourism, border fencing, issuance of border pass and cooperation in agricultural sector.