RESTRICTED  
  
WT/TPR/G/385  
6 February 2019  
(19-0669) Page: 1/14 
Trade Policy Review Body   Original: English  
 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW  
REPORT BY  
BANGLADESH  
Pursuant to the Agreement Establishing the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (Annex 3 of the 
Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization), the policy statement by 
Bangladesh  is attached.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Note: This report is subject to restricted circulation and press embargo until the end of the 
first session of the meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body on Bangladesh . WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 2 - 
 
  Contents  
1   INTRODUCTION  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  3 
2   RECENT ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE  ................................ ................................ ............  4 
3   TRADE POLICY AND  TRADE FACILITATION  ................................ ..............................  10 
4   BANGLADESH IN MULTIL ATERAL TRADING SYSTE M ................................ .................  12 
5   BANGLADESH IN BI LATERAL AND REGIONAL  TRADE AGREEMENTS  .........................  13 
6   WAY FORWARD  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........  13 
 
 
  WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 3 - 
 
  1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  The Fifth Trade Policy Review of Bangladesh cover ing the period between 2012 and 2018  
witnessed high  economic growth over 6 % tackling various national and international challenges. The 
GDP growth rate was 6.52% in FY 2011-12 which increased to 7.86% in FY 2017-181. The prudent 
macroeconomic management and trade policies with a view to achieving 'Vision 2021 ' for becoming 
a middle -income country and 'Vision 2041 ' to be a developed country led the country to continue 
with stable growth along with remarkable socio -econo mic development.  
1.2.  During 2015-2018, the overall economic indices have shown remarkable improvement, 
particularly in infrastructure, energy and power sector, information and communication technolog ies 
(ICT) and investments in  the private and the public sect ors. The incidence and depth of poverty in 
Bangladesh decreases significantly due to various government initiatives , especially adopting 
life-cycle approach to social safety net programmes. As a result, t he headcount poverty rate declined 
from 31.5 % in 201 0-11 to 21.8% in 2017 -18 while the  hardcore poverty reduced from 24 % in 
2010-11 to 11.3% in 2017 -2018. Inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient however , has 
remained mostly unchanged between 0.321 in 2010 and 0.324 in 2016.  
1.3.  Keeping pace with the increased development activities of the Government, the annual budget 
size is increasing gradually. Total budget outlay for FY  2018-19 increased by 2 5.05% to 
BDT 4645.73  billion  compared to the revised budget of the previous fiscal year. In line with this,  the 
Government has been  implementing various tax reforms including legal and administrative reforms . 
The revenue mobili zation increased by 18.74% in 2017 -18 compared to the outturn of the previous 
fiscal year. The allocations and number of development projects implemented also increased during 
this period under Annual Development Programme  (ADP).  
1.4.  The monetary policy of the country has been formulated along with the fiscal measures to 
support the higher economic growth , maintaining macroeconomic stability and keeping inflation at 
tolerable rate . As a result of prudent monetary and fiscal policies, inflation came down to 5. 8% in 
FY 2017-18 from 7.4% in FY 2013-14, foreign exchange reserve stood at US D 32.92 billion at the 
end of June, 2018 and exports -import s also showed upward trend.   
1.5.  In the last seven years starting from 2012, Bangladesh has made an unstoppable journey in 
GDP growth, investment, p er capita GNI, power generation , food grain production and stabi lizing 
inflation rate. During the period under review, Bangladesh achieved an average GDP growth rate of 
6.7% while the developing economies ' average GDP growth rate was 5.1 %, public investment rose 
to 8% from 5.76 %, per capita income also increased from US D 955 to US D 1,751 electricity 
generation increased from 8,716 megawatts to 18,353 megawatts  and food grain production 
increased from 38.8 million MT to 40.7 million between 2011 -12 to 2017 -18 despite massive 
urbanization, population increase, reduction of cult ivable land  and other challenges (Table  1).  
Table 1 Important Macro Economic Indicators (at constant prices), Power Generation 
and Food Grain Production  
Fiscal 
Year GDP 
Growth 
(%) Investment as % of GDP  Per 
Capita 
Income 
(USD ) Average 
Inflation 
(%) Power 
Generation 
Capacity 
(MW)  Food Grain 
Production 
(lakh MT) Public  Private  Total  
2011-12 6.52 5.76 22.50  28.26  955 8.7 8,716  368.39  
2012-13 6.01 6.64 21.75  28.39  1,054  6.8 9,151  372.66  
2013-14 6.06 6.55 22.03  28.58  1,184  7.4 10,416  381.74  
2014-15 6.55 6.82 22.07  28.89  1,316  6.4 11,534  384.19  
2015-16 7.11 6.66 22.99  29.65  1,465  5.9 14,429  388.17  
2016-17 7.28 7.41 23.10  30.51  1,610  5.4 15,379  386.34  
2017-18 7.86 7.97 23.26 31.23 1,751 5.8 18,353  407.14*  
* Projected  
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review , BBS.   
 
                                                
1 Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS ). WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 4 - 
 
  1.6.  Bangladesh has made noteworthy progress in achieving  MDGs , particularly in  infant mortality, 
universal primary education, maternal health, gender equality, women empowerment and life 
expectancy. Bangladesh also developed a road map for implementation of the SDGs (2016 -2030) in 
the Seventh Five Year Plan. Each Ministry/Division has initially identified specific targets in line with 
17 goals and 169 targets of the SDGs.  
1.7.  Bangladesh continues to reform trade and fiscal policie s reducing its dependency on customs 
duty. During 2012 -2018, Bangladesh registered a significant increase in export from 
USD 24.30  billion in FY  2011-12 to US D 36.66 billion in FY  2017-182 and targeted to achieve 
USD 60 billion by 2021. Annual import stood  at US D 58.86 billion in FY  2017-18 increasing from 
USD 22.5 billion in FY  2011-12.3 
1.8.  With continuing realization of 'Vision 2021 ' Bangladesh elevated to lower -middle income 
country in 2015. Besides, Bangladesh has been able to meet all the three criteria  for graduation 
from the least developed country status to a developing country status during 2018 Triennial Review 
of the UN Committee for Development Policy (CDP). As per estimation of  the CDP, Bangladesh was 
able to almost triple d her GNI per capita, incr ease Human Asset Index by 40 % and keep the 
economic Vulnerability Index lowest among the LDCs since 2009 ( Chart  1). Accordingly, at the next 
triennial review in 2021, the country is expected to be recommended for graduation by 2024. 
Bangladesh is also rede signing its trade strategy considering the post -graduation reality. Under the 
strategy, it will create competitive edge by diversifying export basket of goods and services, 
expanding existing markets and exploring new ones and taking initiatives to promote  trade through 
Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). Efforts are also continuing to expand trade under regional and 
multilateral agreements like SAFTA, APTA, BIMSTEC and the WTO.  
Chart 1 Bangladesh towards graduation from LDC status  
 
 
Criteria  Threshold  Bangladesh Score  
GNI per capita  (USD)  1,230 or above  1,274  
Economic Vulnerability Index (EVI)  32 or below  25.2 
Human Asset Index (HAI)  66 or above  73.2 
Source:  https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/ least-developed -country -category/ldc -data-
retrieval.html . 
2  RECENT ECONOMIC PERF ORMANCE  
2.1.  Bangladesh being elevated into a lower middle -income country in 2015, has achieved notable 
improvement in macroeconomic indicators and sectoral growth. Prudent macroeconomic 
management has resulted in declining price levels, relatively low unemployment and manageable 
external debt levels.  
2.2.  The s ervices sector is the largest contributor to GDP accounting for nearly 52.11 % in 
FY 2017-18, followed by industry (33.6 7%) of which  manufacturing sector contributed to  22.85 %. 
                                                
2 Export Promotion Bureau.  
3 National Board of Revenue.  
02004006008001,0001,2001,400
01020304050607080
2003 2006 2009 2012 2015 2018
EVI HAI GNI per capita (USD)Figure 1:  Bangladesh towards graduation from LDC status
Source:  https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/least -developed -country -category/ldc -data-retrieval.html
GNIper capita (USD)EVI & HAI IndexWT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 5 - 
 
  Agriculture, fisheries and forestry together added 14.23 % to GDP . Recently, the construction sector 
has also become an important contributor to GDP. However, over this period the growth of industrial 
sector has been the highest (Table 2).  
Table 2 Structure of GDP of Bangladesh (As Percentage of GDP a t constant prices)  
Sector  2011 -12 2012 -13 2013 -14 2014 -15 2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 
Agriculture  17.38  16.77  16.50  16.00  15.35  14.74  14.23  
Industry  28.08  29.00  29.55  30.42  31.54  32.42  33.66  
Service  54.54  54.23  53.95  53.58  53.12  52.85  52.11  
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review, 2018 . 
2.3.  At constant price, the growth of the broad agriculture sector (crop, fisheries and forestry) was  
4.19% in FY 2017-18 which was 2.97 % in the previous fiscal year. The growth of industrial sector 
also increased from 10.22 % to 12.06 % during this period; of which the growth of large and medium 
scale manufacturing sub -sector increased to 14.26 %; but the growth of the small scale 
manufacturing sub -sector remains around 10 %. The growth of the broad service sector slightly 
decrease d to 6.39 % in FY 2017-18 from 6.69 % in FY 2016-17 due to decrease in growth in the 
financial intermediaries, education and health sectors. However, the growth in wholesale and retail 
business, real estate and hotel & restaurant business increased compared to previous year (Chart  2).  
Chart 2 Broad s ectoral GDP growth at constant prices  
 
 
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review, 2018 . 
2.4.  During the period between FY  2011-12 and FY  2017-18, national saving as percentage of GDP 
remained stable at around 30 %. However,  it declined from 29.64 in 2016 -17 to 28.07 % in 2017 -18 
despite increased worker remittance inflow from abroad. This is primarily due to increase in current 
account trade balance . National investment as percentage of GDP has also registered gradual 
increas e from 28.26 % in FY 2011-12 to 31.23 % in FY 2017-18. The private sector investment stood 
at 23.25% in FY 2017-18 representing the major share in national investment . Government efforts 
to develop infrastructure, power plant, mega projects like the Padma Br idge, Nuclear Power Plant 
and Metro Rail Project in recent years h ave a major contribution to gradual increase of national 
investment ( Chart 3).  
0%2%4%6%8%10%12%14%
2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18
Agriculture Industry Services GDPFigure 2:  Broad sectoral GDP growth at constant prices
Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2018WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 6 - 
 
  Chart 3 Trend of investment, domestic savings and national savings as percentage of 
GDP 
 
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review , 2018. 
2.5.  In order to increase domestic and foreign investment, the Government of Bangladesh 
formulat ed investment friendly policies, acts and laws. Board of Investment (BOI) and Privatization 
Commission were merged into Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) to expedite 
the investment friendly  environment. Bangladesh has signed 29 bilateral Trade and Investment 
Cooperation agreements for promotion and protection of foreign investment. Beside s, it has signed 
agreements on avoidance of double taxation with 27 countries. Agreements are also signed with 
18 countries for joint economic and trade cooperation.  
2.6.  Every year about two million people are added to the job market of Bangladesh. The country 
has been endeavouring to create employment opportunities through enhancing the skills and quality 
of the workers, improving work ing environment as well as creating new opportunities in public and  
private sector s. To this end, the country has formulated the 'National Skill Development Policy 2011 '. 
In the light of this Policy, a 37 -member National Skill Development Council (NSDC) headed by the 
Hon'ble Prime M inister has been formed for coordinating activities on skill development, training and 
employment generation program mes under 23 Ministries/Divisions and NGOs. National Human 
Resource Development Fund (NHRDF) has been created  for ensuring flow of funds for  skill 
development activities/programmes . As a result, unemployment rate has decreased from 4.5 % to 
4.20% during the period of review.  
2.7.  Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority (BEZA) has taken an initiative to create employment of 
around 10 million people  by establishing 100 Economic Zones (EZs) throughout the country in the 
next 15 years. Approval ha s already been given to establish 79 EZ (public 56 and private 23). It is 
expected that the investment in the country will go up and GDP growth will be accele rated due to 
comprehensive plans and programmes undertaken by Government in its Annual Development 
Programmes  to develop infrastructure , rapid electrification, energy diversification, develop ment of  
communication system and information technology .  
2.8.  One of the major challenges for the Government of Bangladesh is mobilization of internal 
resources. The total revenue as a percentage of GDP remains around 10 -12% since 2011-12, while 
tax revenue as a share of GDP remains stable between 9 -11% and non -tax revenue stands below 
2% during 2012 -2018. But this does not mean that the growth in revenue collection was sluggish. 
This occurs due to rebasing of tax revenue during this period. To increase the tax -GDP and 
revenue -GDP ratio s, the Government has undertaken measur es including amendments of customs, 
VAT and tax legislations in line with the global best practice, widening the tax net, automation, 
enhancing tax compliance, and simplifying tax collection processes  etc. Most important achievement 
during this period is t hat the Government has gradually reduced dependence on import duty on tax 
revenue with gradual increase of value added tax and income tax revenue (Table 3).  
0%5%10%15%20%25%30%35%
2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18
Investment Domestic savings National savingsFigure 3:  Trend of investment, domestic savings and national savings, as percentage of GDP
Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2018WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 7 - 
 
  Table 3 Source of tax revenue and their share in GDP (in crore Taka)  
Indicators  2011 -12 2012 -13 2013 -14 2014 -15 2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 
Total revenue  117,033 139,670 156,671  163,371  177,399 218,500  259,454 
Tax revenue  94,754 116,824 130,178  140,676  155,399 192,261  232,202 
Non-tax revenue  22,279 22,846 26,493  22,695  22,000 26,239  27,252 
 As % of GDP 
Total revenue  10.88  11.65  11.66  10.78  10.24  11.68  12.18  
Tax revenue  9.12  9.74  9.69  9.28  8.97  10.28  10.90  
Non-tax revenue  1.76  1.91  1.97  1.50  1.27  1.40 1.28 
Source : Bangladesh Economic Review , 2018. 
2.9.  Country's export earnings stood at US D 36,668 million in FY  2017-18, which is 5.81 % higher 
than the export earnings (US D 34,656 million) in FY 2016-17. Export earnings increase d mainly due 
to increase of export of agricultural product s, ceramic products, handicraft s, cotton and cotton 
products, knitwe ar, home textile, jute goods, chemical products, woven garments etc. Data on 
category -wise exports in FY  2017-18 shows that the export earnings from agricultural and ceramic 
products have increased by 38.55 % and 32.70 % respectively over the last fiscal yea r, followed by 
handicraft products (15.26 %), cotton and cotton products (14.03 %), knitwear (10.40 %), home 
textile (9.95 %), jute goods (9.48 %), chemical products (7.66 %), woven garments (7.18 %), 
speciali zed textile (3.67 %) and footwear (1.33 %). On the other  hand, export earnings decreased 
mainly of petroleum by product s (86.18 %), engineering products (48.32 %), tea (38.03 %), plastic 
product (15.79 %), leather and leather goods (12.03 %), raw jute (7.24 %) and frozen food (3.42 %). 
Export earnings by commodities, commodity -wise percentage share in total export earnings and the 
growth of export earnings from FY  2015-16 to FY  2017-18 have been shown in Table  4. 
Table 4 Export earnings composition and growth of export income  
(USD million)  
Group wise 
Commodities  Export  earnings  Percentage share in 
total export 
earnings  Growth  
2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 2016 -17 2017 -18 2016 -17 2017 -18  
1. Primary products  1,305 1,247 1,338 3.60 3.65 -4.41 7.24 
a) Frozen food 536 526 508 1.52 1.39 -1.74 -3.42 
b) Tea 2 4 3 0.01 0.01 144.26  -38.03  
c) Agricultural product  309 275 381 0.79 1.04 -11.12  38.55  
d) Raw jute 173 168 156 0.48 0.42 -3.08 -7.24 
e) Others  285 274 290 0.79 0.79 -3.91 5.93 
2. Industrial goods 32,974 33,576 35,486 96.88  96.78  1.83 5.69 
a) Woven garments  14,739 14,393 15,426 41.53  42.07  -2.35 7.18 
b) Knitwear  13,355 13,757 15,189 39.70  41.42  3.01 10.40  
c) Specialized textile  109 106 110 0.31 0.30 -2.37 3.67 
d) Home textile  753 799 879 2.31 2.40 6.13 9.95 
e) Cotton and cotton 
products  103 109 125 0.32 0.34 6.55 14.03  
f) Leather and leather 
goods  1,161 1,234 1,086 3.56 2.96 6.29 -12.03  
g) Jute goods  746 795 870 2.29 2.37 6.45 9.48 
h) Chemical products  124 140 151 0.40 0.41 13.21  7.66 
i) Footwear  219 241 244 0.70 0.67 9.90 1.33 
j) Engineering products  510 689 356 1.99 0.97 35.05  -48.32  
k) Petroleum by product  297 244 34 0.70 0.09 -17.93  -86.18  
l) Plastic product  89 117 98 0.34 0.27 31.40  -15.79  
m) Ceramic products  38 39 52 0.11 0.14 3.85 32.70  
n) Handicrafts  10 14 17 0.04 0.05 44.66  15.26  
o) Others  721 899 851 2.59 2.32 24.71  -5.37 
Total  34,257 34,656 36,668 100.00  100.00  1.16 5.81 
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review , 2018. 
 WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 8 - 
 
  2.10.   The European Union remains the main export destination of Bangladesh and expected to be  
so mainly due to EBA facilities along with favourable Rules of Origin for the LDCs. However, the  
country -wise export shows that the United States  is the main export destination. In FY  2017-18, 
export earnings from the United States  stood at USD 5,983.31 m illion which is 16.32 % of country 's 
total export earnings followed by Germany (16.06 %), United Kingdom  (10.88 %), and France 
(5.47 %). The country -wise export earnings are shown in  Table 5  and Table 6 . 
Table 5 Country -wise export earnings  
(Million US D) 
Fisca l 
Year  
United 
States  
Germany  
United 
Kingdom  
France  
Belgium  
Italy  
Netherland s 
Canada  
Japan  
Others  
Total  
2011-12 5,100.91  3,688.98  2,444.57  1,380.37  741.96  977.41  691.30  993.67  600.53  7,682.20  24,301.90  
2012-13 5,419.60  3,962.60  2,764.90  1,513.89  730.81  1,036.60  712.47  1,090.02  750.26  9,046.21  27,027.36  
2013-14 5,583.62  4,720.49  2,917.73  1,677.67  970.53  1,332.38  858.13  1,099.63  862.07  10,164.37  30,186.62  
2014-15 5,783.43  4,705.36  3,205.45  1,743.54  975.13  1382.35  840.34  1,029.13  915.22  10,628.99  31,208.94  
2015-16 6,220.65  4,988.08  3,809.7  1,852.16  1,015.33  1,385.67  845.92  1,112.88  1,079.55  11,947.24  34,257.18  
2016-17 5,846.64  5,475.73  3,569.26  1,892.55  918.85  1,462.95  1,045.69  1,079.19  1,012.98  12,352.06  34,655.9  
2017-18 5,983.31  5,890.72  3,989.12  2,004.97  877.9  1,559.92  1,205.37  1,118.72  1,131.9  12,906.24  36,668.17  
Share in 
total 
export 
earnings 
in 
2017-18 
(%) 16.32  16.06  10.88  5.47 2.39 4.25 3.29 3.05 3.09 35.20  100.00  
Source:  Export Promotion Bureau.  
Table 6 Destination of B angladesh's export  
Financial Year  2010 -11 2017 -18 
Total (USD  million)  22,928.2  36,668.17  
EU 52.1%  54.80%  
USA 22.3%  16.32%  
Canada  4.3%  3.05%  
Japan  1.9%  3.09%  
China  0.8%  2.40%  
Turkey  3.2%  1.90%  
Other  14.8%  18.44%  
Source:  Export Promotion Bureau, Bangladesh.  
2.11.   Country's total import payments ( C&F) stood at US D 58,865 million in FY  2017-18, which is 
25.2% higher than the import payments of US D 47,005 million  of the previous year . The import 
payment recorded a considerable hike due to import of capital machineries and construction 
equipment for industries and mega projects undertaken by government in particular. 
Commodity -wise import payments from FY  2013-14 to FY  2017-18 are shown in Table 7 . 
Table 7 Commodity -wise i mport payments  
(Million US D) 
Commodity  2011 -12 2012 -13 2013 -14 2014 -15 2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 
1. Major Primary 
Commodities  4,149 4,075 5,349 4,477 4,227 4,725 7,270 
    Rice 288 30 348 508 113 89 1,605 
   Wheat  613 696 1,126 983 949 1,197 1,494 
   Oil Seeds  177 242 524 374 534 432 571 
   Crude Petroleum  987 1,102 929 316 386 478 365 
   Cotton  2,084 2,005 2,422 2,296 2,245 2,529 3,235 WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 9 - 
 
  Commodity  2011 -12 2012 -13 2013 -14 2014 -15 2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 
2. Major Industrial 
Commodities  9,263 8,529 9,475 7,906 8,403 8,894 10,818 
Edible oil 1,644 1,402 1,766 924 1,450 1,626 1,863 
 Petroleum p roducts  3,922 3,642 4,070 2,076 2,275 2,898 3,652 
 Fertilizer  1,381 1,188 1,026 1,339 1,117 737 1,006 
Clinker  504 487 615 638 574 644 766 
 Staple fibre 428 454 492 1,078 1,018 1,017 1,180 
Yarn 1,384 1,356 1,506 1,851 1,969 1,972 2,351 
3. Capital Machinery  2,005 1,835 2,288 3,321 3,556 3,817 5,462 
4. Others Commodities 
(including EPZ)  20,099 19,645 23,620 25,000 26,936 29,569 35,315 
Total  35,516  34,084  40,732  40,704  43,122  47,005  58,865  
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review , 2018. 
2.12.   China and India are the major sources of import of Bangladesh. During the period under 
review, import from Ch ina gradually increased till FY  2013-14 and  then got a sharp increase in 
FY 2014-15 and continued it till  2017-18. Import from the U nited States  also increased due to high 
demand for import of cotton and machineries.  Share of import from India has increased till 
FY 2013-14 and came down thereafter. Among the top 10 sources of import, Malaysia has increased 
its share till FY 2012-13 and declined thereafter, while the shares of remaining countries in total 
import of Bangladesh have declined during this period (Table 8). 
Table 8 Sources of Bangladesh's import  
 
2011 -12 2012 -13 2013 -14 2014 -15 2015 -16 2016 -17 2017 -18 
Total i mport (USD  in million)  35,516  34,084  40,732  40,704  43,122  47,005  58,865  
China (%)  18.13  18.57  18.54  27.68  29.18  28.28  27.07  
India (%)  13.35  14.01  14.69  13.73  13.27  13.48  15.19  
Singapore (%)  4.81 4.17 5.91 7.11 2.79 4.50 3.83 
Japan (%)  4.10 3.46 3.17 4.46 4.81 4.32 4.11 
Hong Kong (%)  1.98 1.78 1.87 2.16 1.92 1.54 1.15 
Taiwan (%)  2.23 2.15 2.20 2.60 2.33 2.11 1.92 
Rep of Korea (%)  4.35 3.80 2.90 3.48 3.29 3.15 3.24 
United States (%)  1.99 1.58 1.94 2.16 2.63 2.89 3.67 
Malaysia (%)  3.96 5.58 5.12 3.34 2.75 2.21 2.28 
Others  45.10  44.87  43.66  33.26  37.04  37.52  37.54  
Source : Bangladesh Economic Review, 2018 . 
2.13.   Foreign employment and remittance from Bangladeshi nationals working abroad continue d to 
make important contribution to economic development of the country through reducing the rate of 
unemployment, poverty alleviation and strengthening foreign exchange reserves. In spite of 
decreasing the migration rate, during the period under review, th e number of expatriate workers 
has been almost double and Bangladesh has earned huge amount of remittances in FY  2017-18. 
About 8.8 lakh Bangladeshi employees went abroad in FY  2017-18, which was 2.8 % lower than the 
previous year. Bangladesh achieved remit tances of US D 14,981.69 million in the FY  2017-18 which 
is 17.32 % higher than US D 12,769.5 million in the FY  2016-17. During this period, share of 
remittance to GDP has recorded a rising trend (Table 9).  
Table 9 Number of Expatriate Employees and Amount of  Remittance  
FY No. of 
Employment 
Abroad ( '000)  Amount of Remittance  
USD million  Change (%)  Tk. Crore  Change (%)  
2011-12 691 12,843.40  10.24  101,882.78  22.76  
2012-13 441 14,461.15  12.60  115,646.16  13.51  
2013-14 409 14,228.30  -1.61 110,582.37  -4.38 
2014-15 461 15,316.91  7.65 118,993.00  7.60 
2015-16 685 14,931.14  -2.52 116,856.00  -1.79 
2016-17 905 12,769.45  -14.48  101,099.00  -13.48  
2017-18 880 14,981.69  17.32  123,156.00  21.82  
Source:  Bangladesh Economic Review , 2018.  WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 10 - 
 
  2.14.   During the period under review, Bangladesh's current account balance improved from a deficit 
of US D 447 million (0.3% of GDP) in FY  2011-12 to a surplus of nearly US D 4.3 billion (1.9% of 
GDP) in FY  2015-16. Trade deficit has significantly increased to USD 18.26 billion in FY  2017-18 
compared to US D 9.47 billion in FY  2016-17 due to high import payment. The rising deficit reflects 
a widening gap between gross national savings and gross domestic investment.  Between FY  2011-12 
and FY  2015-16, the current account balance improved on the back of an improving trade balance 
and rising workers ' remittances. During the FY  2017-18, strong and broad -based rebound in 
remittance growth is recorded at 17.3 % due to different initiatives of remittance arrangements with 
exchange companies abroad f or smooth operation of formal channels.  
3  TRADE POLICY AND TRA DE FACILITATION  
3.1.  Government formulated Export Policy 2015 -2018 to promote and facilitate export, improve 
quality of the exportable items, use environment friendly technologies and produce high valu e added 
and labour intensive products. The Policy identified 12 sectors as the Highest Priority Sectors and 
designated 14 sectors as the Special Development Sectors. The Highest Priority Sectors include: 
high value -added readymade garment and garment acces sories; software and IT enable services, 
ICT products; pharmaceutical products; ship s and ocean going fishing trawler s; footwear and leather 
products; jute products; plastic products; agro -products and agro -processed products; furniture; 
home textiles and terry towel; home furnishing; and luggage. Special program mes have been 
designed to boost up export of these sectors.  
3.2.  The Government continues to promote export through various promotional activities organized 
by the Export Promotion Bureau. The activities include holding annual international trade fair in the 
capital, organizing single country trade fairs in various countries, encouraging exporters to 
participate in international trade fairs, organize  overseas training programmes on product 
development and marketing with a view to developing technical skills and marketing expertise; and 
other arrangements  for product and market development. In Bangladesh, concentration of export 
market and products is very high . Therefore,  Government has taken initiative s to implement a 
project titled "Export Competitiveness for Jobs " in FY 2016-17. The main objective of the project is 
to diversif y basket  in four priority sectors such as leather and leather goods, footwear, light 
engineering (including electronics and mach ineries) and plastic  which is expected to create 
19,000 additional  jobs. 
3.3.  Since 2012, the Government has allowed to borrow low cost foreign currency loan as buyers ' 
credit by the manufacturers -exporters to facilitate import of capital machinery and raw mate rials. 
This low cost financing has helped to reduce the  cost of production of the exporters.  
3.4.  Government of Bangladesh  formulated the Import Policy Order (IPO) 2015 -18 with minimal 
changes from the previous 2012 -2015 policy for maintaining the continuity a nd predictability of the 
policy measures. The major changes include conditional approval of the Ministry of Commerce for 
import of formaldehyde, formaldehyde solutions and formalin in line with Formalin Control Act, 2015 
which intended to prevent any misus e of these items as food additive and preservatives.  
3.5.  With a target to achieve GDP growth rate at 10% by 2021, National Industrial Policy 2016  was 
announced. The Policy envisages increase d contribution of the industrial sector to GDP from present 
30% to 40% of GDP and employment from present 16 % to 25% by 2021. The underlying objectives 
of the Industrial Policy 2016 include sustainable and inclusive industrial growth through generation 
of productive employment, creating new entrepreneurs, mainstreaming wome n in the 
industrialization process and development of international market linkage. The key determinants of 
National Industrial Policy 2016 are SME Development, infrastructural transformation, diversification 
of the economic base, accelerated economic grow th, employment generation, women 
entrepreneurship development, increasing income level and development of livelihood of the people.  
3.6.  Cottage, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (CMSMEs) are considered as a potential sector 
in addressing  unemployment probl em. This sector has been playing a significant role for achieving 
economic growth and earning foreign currency by encouraging and expanding the business activities. 
With a view to enhancing the living standard of the mass people, to ensure women empowermen t 
along with reducing gender discrimination for the development of this sector, Bangladesh Banks 
instructed the commercial banks to disburse at least 22 % of the commercial loans to the SMEs which 
will gradually be increased to 25 % by 2021. As a result, a t otal of BDT 1,419.353 billion has been WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 11 - 
 
  disbursed to SMEs in 2016 which is 22.49 % higher than that of the previous year. Beside s, 
Bangladesh Bank has also set up a 9 % ceiling interest for women entrepreneurs to  encourag e them 
to be involved in the SME businesses . In 2016, BDT 53.456 billion has been disbursed as SME loans 
to 41,675 women entrepreneurs.  
3.7.  The tariff remains Bangladesh 's main trade policy instrument. Customs schedule is published 
at the beginning of each financial year and considered as int egral part of Customs Act 1969. Customs 
Tariff is available online  at https://customs.gov.bd/files/TRF_1819_TTI.pdf . Bangladesh maintains 
six tariff slabs with maximum tariff  rate of 25 %. The c urrent tariff bands are 0 %, 1%, 5%, 10%, 
15%, and 25 %. 
3.8.  Bangladesh has undertaken major reforms  of the Customs Administration to facilitate trade. It 
has introduced ASYCUDA World in September 2013 and formulated a new Customs Act which is now 
waiting  for the approval of the P arliament. A specific format known as Single Administrative 
Document (SAD) has also been developed.  The Government has been implementing a four -year 
National Single Window (NSW) project since  January 2017 with the aim of fulfilling  its commitment 
to expedite ease of doing business. The project will bring all the support services activities under 
one umbrella and reduce the cost of doing business.  Certificates and licences to be issued and 
permits for import, export and transit of go ods will be automated in the new NSW system.  
3.9.  Bangladesh has abolished the mandatory PSI on 31 December 2012. However, the provisions 
of Import Policy Order 2015 -2018 stipulate PSI requirements for imports  of BDT 5 million  (fifty lakh) 
or more; raw and packing materials for the pharmaceutical industry; break acrylic; chemical 
fertilizer; coal and hard coke; M. S. Billets; and under "terrain" car parts.  
3.10.   In compliance with the WTO Agreements, the Government brought necessary amendments 
in the Customs Act, 1969 and formulated Rules  for initiating investigations and imposing duties on  
anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard measures. The Chairman Bangladesh Tariff Commission 
has been appointed as the designated authority  for taking measu res in these areas . Despite having 
legal instruments, as of now Bangladesh is unable to initiate any investigation for trade remedial 
measures due to limited capacity. Government has taken initiatives to strengthen the existing 
institutional capacities  through training and awareness programmes on trade remedial measures.  
3.11.   The Customs Act of Bangladesh also provides for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Any 
case or dispute pending before any customs authority or Bangladesh court in respect of a levy, 
assessment, collection or refund of duty and taxes, fines or penalties, or customs valuation issues 
can be dealt with and settled by ADR.  
3.12.   Chottogram (Chittagong) Sea Port, the major sea port in Bangladesh, handles 92 % of the 
country 's total ocean containers.  At present, the annual trade growth through  Chottogram Sea Port 
is 14%. Considering the enormous importance of the port, the Government has taken a number of 
modernization programmes  in enhancing  efficiency of the port and promoting trade facilitation. As 
a result, the average Turn -Around time of vessels at jetty goes down to 2.83 days in June 2017  
compared to  3.06 days in 2011.  Now, the port is ready to extend its facilities for using by the 
neighbouring countries  too. 
3.13.   Along with this, Government has taken several initiatives for improving the capacities of the 
Mongla port to turn it into a sea port  with all modern facilit ies. Construction of Padma Bridge, 
establishment of Khulna -Mongla Rail lines, Khan -Jahan Ali Airport, setting up 1,320 MW coal based 
power  plant and E conomic Zones jointly with India and expansion of Rampal C oal Based Power Plant 
will facilitate import of 4.5 million MT coal through this port by FY 2020-21. Beside s, Paira Port, the 
third sea port started its journey in November 2013 in limit ed scale.  
3.14.   Government of Bangladesh has undertaken measures for developi ng trade related capacities. 
It has established Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute (BFTI) in 2003 with a concept of public -private 
partnership (PPP) between  the Ministry of Commerce (M oC) and the private sector. Its prime focus 
is on research, education, training and policy advocacy on international trade -related issues. The 
Ministry of Commerce has been working with the public and private universities, think  tanks and 
academia for enhancing their trade related capacities.  WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 12 - 
 
  3.15.   In order to ensure competition and to prohibit anti -competitive business practices in the 
market, the Government has promulgated Competition Act 2012  in June 2012. Under this Act, 
Bangladesh Competition Commission has  already been established for effective implementation and 
enforcement of the Act.  
3.16.   With a view to ensur ing th e ease of doing business, the office of the Registrar of Joint Stock 
Companies and Firms has introduced online registration system to enable the c ompanies and firms 
to get registration within four hours from the time of submission of application. This step has 
shortened the start -up time of business by around 30 days.  
3.17.   Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) is the lone national standards  body of 
the country. The main responsibilities of BSTI are to develop the national standards of products 
testing and certification for quality of products as per Bangladesh standards and to provide metrology 
and calibration services throughout the country . BSTI is also issuing the Management System 
Certificates (MSC). Different laboratories of BSTI have already been awarded accreditation from 
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), India. A total of 
178 parameters have  got accreditation by NABL. On October 2014 BSTI has got accreditation for 
33 products from National Accreditation Board for Certification Body (NABCB), India. Besides, BSTI 
has been awarded accreditation jointly by Norwegian Accreditation and Bangladesh A ccreditation 
Board (BAB) on 26 November 2013.  
3.18.   As a signatory of the WTO Agreement o n Sanitary and Phyto sanitary measures, Bangladesh 
has SPS regime and institutional mechanism in place. The Government has enacted Plant Quarantine 
Act 2011, Safe Food Act 2 013; Bangladesh Animal Slaughter and Meat Quality Control Act 2011; 
Fish Feed and Animal Feed Act, 2010; Fish Feed Rules, 2011; Fish Hatchery Act, 2010; and Fish 
Hatchery Rules, 2011. The Plant Quarantine Wing of the Department of Agriculture Extension  (DAE) 
has currently 16 laboratories and as of 2017, DAE has 30 plant quarantine stations at different 
customs points.  
3.19.   In the area of intellectual property rights,  the Government has taken initiatives to amend and 
introduce new laws in accordance with the TRIP S Agreement. The National Intellectual Property 
Policy 2018 ha s already been approved by the Cabinet.  It has also amended the Trade Marks Act in 
2015 and formulated the Trademarks Rules, 2015. Bangladesh  has also passed Geographical 
Indications of Goods (Registration and Protections) Act, 2013 and adopted Rules in 2015 . Jamdani  
and H ilsha fish are already registered as GI products . The proposed Customs Act 2018  also include 
a provision to inspect, seize, and detain shipments of any counterfeit or pirated goods.  
4  BANGLADESH IN MULTIL ATERAL TRADING SYSTE M 
4.1.  Bangladesh is a strong proponent of multilateral trading system and remains active in all WTO 
activities. It was elected by the LDC group in Geneva as the LDC coordinator for the fourth time 
from 15 February 2015 until 18 February 2016. During this period, Bangladesh on behalf of the LDCs 
successfully negotiated landmark decision on extension of exemption for the LDCs from the TRIP S 
obligation for pharmaceut ical products until January 2033. Bangladesh also led the negotiations for 
decisions on preferential rules of origin for the LDCs and operation and extension of LDCs services 
waiver during 10th WTO Ministerial Conference. During the review period, the majo r focus of 
Bangladesh was the conclusion of the Doha Round and full implementation of the WTO decisions in 
favour of LDCs including the full and effective implementation of the decision on duty free and quota 
free (DFQF) market access for LDC products. Ban gladesh actively participated in the discussions on 
development, implementation of TRIP S Article 66.2 and review of Annex VII of SCM Agreement for 
graduated LDCs. Bangladesh was also active in the discussion on work program on e -commerce for 
ensuring incre ased participation of SMEs of developing and LDCs in emerging e -commerce business. 
Bangladesh also ratified Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) as the 94th member state and notified 
all categories on 21 February 2018.  
4.2.  WTO Cell, under the Ministry of Commer ce, primarily is mandated to discharge all functions 
related to WTO. It oversees the implementation of WTO rules and regulations, availing the 
opportunities under the WTO, building trade capacities and protecting interest of the state in 
international trad e regime.  WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 13 - 
 
  4.3.  The Government has completed 'Diagnostic Trade Integration Study ' for the first time in 2016 
with the support from EIF. This study came up with an Action Matrix identifying the future needs of 
the country on trade related activities. In 2015, th e Government launched Tier -1 project titled 
'Strengthening Institutional Capacity and Human Resource Development for Trade Promotion ' with 
the support from EIF. The project initiated studies on 'Export Potentiality of Trade in Services of 
Bangladesh: Ident ifying Opportunities and Challenges ' and 'Identification of Non -tariff Barriers Faced 
by Bangladeshi Products in Major Export Markets '. Under this project, Government has been 
conducting regular training programs, workshops and symposiums in order to raise  awareness 
among the stakeholders and enhance capacity of the trade officials and academics.  
5  BANGLADESH IN BILATE RAL AND REGIONAL TRA DE AGREEMENTS  
5.1.  Bangladesh is a party to a number of regional trade agreements namely , South Asian Free 
Trade Area (SAFTA), A sia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), Framework Agreement on Bay of Bengal 
Initiatives for Multi -Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation - BIMSTEC FTA, Trade Preferential 
System among the OIC countries (TPS -OIC) and Developing -8 (D -8) Preferential Trading  
Arrangement.  
5.2.  Under Trade Liberalization Program (TLP), all member countries including Bangladesh have 
reduced their duties other than items under sensitive list to 0 -5% by the end of 2016. In addition, 
SAFTA members have revised their sensitive lists and reduced the number by 20 %. At present, the 
activities of TLP Phase III are underway for further substantial reduction of the sensitive list of the 
respective member countries.  
5.3.  APTA member states  concluded the fourth round of negotiations in January 2017. The tariff 
preferences under APTA will cover 10,776 items which has already been implemented from the 
1 July 2018. APTA also covers trade in services, investment and trade facilitation which are under 
process of implementation.  
5.4.  After signing the Framework Agreement on BIMSTEC FTA, three agreements on trade in goods, 
dispute settlement and mutual cooperation on customs matters have been finalized, which are yet 
to be signed by Member countries. TPS OIC and D -8 PTA are expected to come into force soon.  
6  WAY FO RWARD  
6.1.  Bangladesh attaches great importance to trade as an engine of growth and development.  
Maximizing benefits from the opportunities evolving under the multilateral trading system, 
Bangladesh has been trying to increase contribution of trade to the overall economy with a view to 
achieving socio -economic goals.  
6.2.  The Government has been trying re lentlessly to overcome the infrastructure and energy 
constraints. In the face of increasing demand for electricity, the Government is implementing its 
plan of increasing electricity generation capacity to 24 thousand MW by 2021. In this context, 
initiative s have been taken to import Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and to explore new gas fields. To 
remove the bottlenecks of infrastructural paucity the Government is prioritizing integrated 
development of roads, rail and water ways. To expedite economic developmen t as well as 
industrialization , establishment of 100 special economic zones by the next 15 years is in progress. 
Establishment of 79 economic zones has already been approved, of which 56 will be established 
under Government initiatives and the rest will be  built under the private edges. In addition, to speed 
up the implementation of the growth enhancing transformational projects including the Padma 
Bridge project, special fund has been allotted in the national budget.  Successful implementation of 
these pro jects is expected to play a significant role in promoting economic growth.  
6.3.  Bangladesh is in the process of graduating from the group of LDCs by 2024.  Consequently, a 
forward looking strategy is called for sustainable graduation with momentum.  Firstly, Bangladesh 
will need to continue the momentum of economic development so that it distances itself further from 
the thresholds which would give a comfort zone from any likely setback as experienced by a number 
of graduated LDCs . Secondly, d esigning a well -crafted graduation strategy thus has become critically 
important task for Bangladesh in moving forward.  Additionally, Bangladesh 's graduation journey will 
also be taking place at a time of a fast -changing global scenario and in the era of the SDGs where 
there w ill be need for triangulation of economic, social and environmental aspects of development. WT/TPR/G/385 • Bangladesh  
 
- 14 - 
 
  Bangladesh should pursue global and national objectives simultaneously due to the various linkages 
between and among the SDGs and LDC graduation criteria.  
6.4.  Addressi ng the issues of strengthening of supply side capacities, diversification of export 
product and export market, graduation from factor -driven to productivity -driven production 
practices, accessing the opportunities of digital economy, IT -enabled service eco nomy and the new 
knowledge ecosystems, and realizing potential advantages of strengthened regional and global 
integration of the Bangladesh economy are critically important in attaining the SDGs and ensuring 
smooth graduation.  
6.5.  In the above context, continu ation of preferential market access, support for capacity building 
and exemption from TRIP S obligation particularly for the pharmaceutical products will be critically 
important for sustainable graduation for the newly graduated countries. WTO Members there fore, 
need to develop special program mes for the newly graduated countries for ensuring smooth 
transition and preventing any unwanted setback. Continuation of the DFQF at least for additional 
6-10 years after graduating from LDC status, support for capacit y building and supply side 
development, extension of TRIP S exemption as in force for other LDCs and other flexibilities available 
to LDCs for certain period after graduation would be utmost important and deserve urgent attention 
of the WTO Members.  
______ ____