ASEAN envoys meet ICCB president, discuss trade, investment promotion

ASEAN ambassadors have held a meeting with ICC Bangladesh President Mahbubur Rahman and discussed the promotion of bilateral trade and investment prospects between Bangladesh and ASEAN.

The meeting was held at the ICC Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka on Thursday, according to a press release.

During the meeting, the ambassadors were also briefed about the activities of ICC HQs and ICC Bangladesh.

The ICC Bangladesh president mentioned that ASEAN member states are home to a total of 661 million people with a gross domestic product (GDP) of $3.08 trillion and trade exceeding $2.7 trillion. So, there is a huge market for Bangladesh in ASEAN nations.

Bangladesh highly values the ASEAN community and the constructive role it plays in the global arena. According to 2020 data, Bangladesh imports goods worth nearly US$7.0 billion from 10 ASEAN states - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. On the other hand, Bangladesh's exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are still very paltry, less than $1.0 billion per annum, Mahbubur Rahman added.

Noting that imports by Bangladesh from ASEAN are much more than exports, he urged the ambassadors to use their good offices for increasing imports from Bangladesh to reduce the trade gap.

Sheela Pillai, chair of the ASEAN Dhaka Committee & Head of Mission, High Commission of the Republic of Singapore to Bangladesh, thanked the ICCB President for arranging the meeting and expressed her concern regarding the trade gap.

She gave importance to the diversification of the export basket, which will facilitate Bangladesh’s exports to ASEAN countries.

Haji Haris Bin Othman, high commissioner of Brunei Darussalam to Bangladesh, pointed out the agro-based products and meat as potential products for export to Brunei.

Haznah Binte Md Hashim, high commissioner of Malaysia to Bangladesh, said Malaysia has huge investment in Bangladesh and is looking forward to increasing investment in the country.

She pointed out the taxation regime in Bangladesh, which is one of the impediments to attracting investment from Malaysia to Bangladesh.

ICCB Vice President Naser Ezaz Bijoy mentioned that Bangladesh could be an important development partner and act as the bridge between South and ASEAN nations because of its location.

He hoped that the ambassadors would promote connectivity and encourage visits by business delegations from ASEAN and vice versa for the promotion of trade and investment.

The meeting was also attended by Leo Tito L Ausan, ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to Bangladesh; Md Fazlul Hoque, ICCB executive board member; Panom Thongprayoon, minister counsellor, Royal Thai Embassy; ICCB Secretary General Ataur Rahman, ICCB General Manager Ajay Bihari Saha and Deputy General Manager Syeda Shahnewaz Lotika.