Bangladesh needs China for industrialisation, development journey: Experts

Bangladesh needs China for its industrial expansion and next stage of development, said foreign policy experts and stakeholders in a routable yesterday where they highlighted the importance of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to China next week.

There are new avenues that have been opened which came up for discussion including export diversification, discussion on the possible free trade agreement, and a Payra-centric comprehensive development initiative at the event titled "Future of Bangladesh-China Relations" at a city hotel.

Bangladesh needs China for its rapid industrialisation, former state minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam said at the event organised by Bangladesh Foundation for Regional Studies while underscoring the significant role that China has played over the last 15 years.

Focusing on the PM's upcoming event, Shahriar said, "Payra [south-west comprehensive development] is going to be our focal point. This proposal will be placed very strongly. We hope this discussion will progress."

He also said Bangladesh may seek around $5 billion for trade facilitation and there will be efforts to get a positive outcome to that end.

Pressure on forex reserves will be reduced if repayment of ongoing projects worth $4.5 billion can be delayed through discussion, he added.

China implemented duty-free facilities on 97% of Bangladeshi products on 1 July 2020. Later, it was increased to 98%.

In fiscal year 2022-23, China was Bangladesh's single largest trading partner, with bilateral trade amounting to $24 billion, of which Bangladesh's exports amounted to $677 million and imports amounted to $22.9 billion.

Regarding duty-free market access, Shahriar said "I have every reason to believe that they (China) will extend that not just beyond 2026; it will be more like Canada which reviews such benefits every 10 years."

On the Rohingya issue, the speakers said that China must play a stronger role.

Focusing on the relations with China on broader aspects of connectivity, international relations expert Professor Imtiaz Ahmed said, "It's high time to think about connectivity in a much broader way. For instance, China shows how high-speed trains change the country."

In this regard, he said, Bangladesh needs six high-speed trains to connect six divisions where China can help.

He also mentioned the immense possibility of cooperation between Bangladesh and China on health and education.

Saying that the geopolitics of cooperation should be the focus, not the geopolitics of conflict, Prof Imtiaz said, "India and China have an excellent relationship. The Teesta project is an opportunity where China and India can work together for Bangladesh."

Emphasising the multilateralism of relationship, Professor Shahab Enam Khan of Jahangirnagar University's Department of International Relations, said, "Multilateralism is related to the economic portfolio.  Because most debt comes from multilateral relationships."

Saying that the trade potential of China China-Bangladesh relationship is high, he highlighted some areas including agriculture, energy transition, and technology transfer, where China's cooperation is crucial for Bangladesh.

BGMEA Director Shams Mahmud, said, "A significant portion of the support for our apparel supply chain comes from China. There are numerous avenues for closer cooperation between the two countries. Notably, when the European Union's GSP Plus regime begins, we will need to achieve double-stage transformation in textiles and RMG to become eligible."

Rumana Islam, commissioner of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission, said, "When we move towards a bilateral treaty with China, we must certainly keep the trade imbalance between the two countries in mind."

Jatiya Press Club General Secretary and Bhorer Kagoj Editor Shyamal Dutta said, "In the new economic order if we want to reach the next stage of development, we will need China."

Research Director of Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies Mahfuz Kabir was the keynote presenter at the roundtable where former state minister for foreign affairs Abul Hasan Chowdhury also spoke.

PM's former special assistant Barrister Shah Ali Farhad moderated the event.