Labour sector reforms a must

Implementation of the proposed National Action Plan through revising labour laws for labour-sector reforms in Bangladesh is a must-do for availing GSP-Plus facility in export to the European Union market, says the EU envoy.
"That's of course a work in progress. The revision will happen again in September and we are having a lot of conversations about that," Charles Whiteley, the outgoing EU envoy in Bangladesh, told reporters Sunday.
Talking to the journalists after he called on Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he termed the National Action Plan or NAP for the labour sector the key thing as regards qualifying for continuity of the duty-free trade benefit after Bangladesh LDC graduation.
"That is the key to getting GSP issue--the absolute key," he reiterated.
"And we all know what is to be done. So we are working with the ILO and with the government," he added.
Regarding his meeting with the foreign minister, Mr Whiteley said issues related to transition to graduation, EU-Bangladesh ties, Indo-Pacific affairs etc were discussed.
"We are happy that we could build strong foundations in the last three years for these transitions," the European diplomat said, adding that Bangladesh is very important in the South Asia foreign policy of the EU, especially in regard to the Indo-Pacific policy.
Responding to a question he mentioned that Rohingya repatriation, volatile situation in Myanmar and unending war in Ukraine are some of the diplomatic challenges both Bangladesh and the EU are facing now.
Meanwhile, talking to the media after the meeting, Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud said four EU countries--Italy, Germany, Greece and Romania-would recruit three thousand Bangladeshi workers. "The number will be raised based on the performances of the first batch of workers," the minister said.
Bangladesh urged the EU to continue the duty-free trade facilities after graduation from the LDC status, he added. The graduation timeline is 2026.
Bangladesh as a least-developed country (LDC) has been a beneficiary of the EU Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) by way of zero- duty export to its largest market as a bloc. Continuation of the benefit under the new version of the EU GSP scheme -- GSP-plus, after graduation to developing country, is tied to fulfilment of some pledges the country had made on labour and human-rights issues.
The GSP+ is a special incentive package for sustainable development and good governance of vulnerable developing countries, subject to their ratification of 27 international conventions on human rights, labour rights, environmental protection and climate change, and good governance.
Vulnerable countries refer to those suffering from a lack of export diversification and insufficient integration within the international trading system.
The GSP-Plus scheme grants full removal of tariffs on over 66 per cent of EU tariff lines.
The EU engages in a dialogue with authorities and stakeholders in beneficiary countries and also arranges frequent monitoring missions to those countries to ensure execution of the reforms under the terms and conditions.
The NAP covers broadly nine issues, including framing Bangladesh labour law in compliance with the ILO standards on freedom of association and collective bargaining, and elimination of child labour in all its forms by 2025.
According to an FE report, a high-level European Commission monitoring mission is expected to visit Bangladesh on November 12-16 to review the full status of progress made so far.
The European Union is the biggest export destination of Bangladesh, accounting for 58 per cent of the country's total exports and 64 per cent of the total apparel exports. This has been largely facilitated by the zero-tariff benefit under the EU GSP.
The 'zero-duty access' to the EU under the existing GSP scheme will continue for three years after the official announcement of Bangladesh as a developing country. If the existing preferences are not available after the transition time, exports from Bangladesh would face 8.7-percent duty on average.
As a result, it is estimated that shipments would drop at a rate of 5.7 per cent per year. To mitigate these effects, Bangladesh has no choice but to take all necessary measures to qualify for the GSP+ scheme as well as to preserve its competitiveness in the export market, economists say.

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