Bangladesh-Bhutan PTA agreement signed, Bangladesh will get duty free facility on 100 products. Bangladesh and Bhutan have signed the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) to expand duty-free market facilities. As a result of this agreement, Bangladesh will get duty free goods facility in 100 products in Bhutan market. Bhutan will benefit from 34 products.
The agreement was signed by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Bhutanese Prime Minister Lotay Tshering at a virtual ceremony on Sunday, December 6. During the War of Liberation, on 6 December 1971, Bhutan first recognized Bangladesh as an independent and sovereign state. An important agreement was signed on this historic day.
Since 2010, Bangladesh has been providing duty-free market access to Bhutan in 18 products. And 90 products of Bangladesh are getting duty free market facility in Bhutan. As Bhutan seeks duty-free access to some more products, talks begin on a “bilateral preferential trade agreement” between the two countries.
This was discussed during the visit of the Prime Minister of Bhutan to Bangladesh on 12-15 April 2019. Following this, a meeting was held between the two countries through video conference on 21-23 August of that year. The second meeting was held on June 19. In the light of these meetings, the cabinet approved the draft trade agreement last September.
As a result of this agreement, 100 products of Bangladesh will be duty free in Bhutan and 34 products of Bhutan will be duty free in Bangladesh. Importing stones from Bhutan under duty free facility will reduce the cost of construction materials for Bangladesh, which will help in the development of the construction sector. In addition, it will be easier to import raw materials for agricultural processing products at low prices.
News Room, December 06,2020