Exporters push for economic zone near Dhaka airport

Local exporters have sought a special economic zone near the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) for the sake of easier export of edible aquatic species such as live mud crab and eel fish, maintaining their standard and quality.

The Bangladesh Live and Chilled Food Exporters Association (BLCFEA) has requested the commerce ministry to take the next course of action in this connection, sources said.

President of BLCFEA Khair Uddin Ahmed said, "We have been exporting live mud crab and eel fish as non-traditional items via air transport for three decades, which has been contributing to achieving foreign currencies."

General Administration of Customs China (GACC) has set a condition of establishing a standard packing centre in a commercial area for exporting such species to its market," the president stated in the request letter.

He, however, said all packing centres are mainly located in residential areas.

Mr Ahmed feared that the Chinese customs authority could stop its import of live crab and mud eel fish any time because of establishment of the centres in an unplanned way and in residential areas.

"In this context, it is urgent to allocate an EPZ near the national airport to strengthen the foreign currency reserve, meet the demand of buyers, and export such quality products," he added.

When contacted, a senior official of the commerce ministry said, "We received a letter from the BLCFEA seeking an economic zone for local exporters of live eel and crab."

The sector has been battered by the COVID-19 fallout. Exporters were unable to supply items to China, a key market for crab and eel fish, due to the severe export constraints arising from the pandemic's aftermath.

This was exacerbated by compliance hurdles that emerged alongside pandemic-related difficulties, as noted by the BLCFEA.

The sector currently enjoys a 10 per cent cash incentive on crab and eel fish exports.

A major portion of export consignments of crab and eel went to the Chinese market, a sector insider said.

According to the data of the Department of Fisheries (DoF), exports of crabs totalled 7,452 tonnes in fiscal year 2022-23, which was slightly lower than the previous year.

Bangladesh exported 2771.54 tonnes of eel fish to various countries, particularly China, in the last fiscal year, according to the BLCFEA, which have 218 members currently.

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