Lal Mani Joshi, secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) and his Bangladeshi counterpart Mohamed Ghulam Hussain signed the trade pact on Monday -- the last day of two-day commerce secretary level bi-lateral talks held in Kathmandu.[break]
“In an effort to facilitate trade between the two South Asian neighbors, officials of the both countries have agreed to finalize the modalities on operating carriage transit cargo by December this year. Nepal can increase trade with Bangladesh through Chittagong and Mangla port once the modality is enforced,” said Naindra Prasad Upadhya, joint secretary of MoCS.
He said the agreement will be endorsed by the secretary level meeting after a joint secretary-level meeting in September finalizes the points agreed in Kathmandu. Both the sides have agreed to hold secretary-level trade talks in Dhaka in February.
As per the pact, Bangladesh, which has been slapping 60 percent customs duty on Nepali agri products, has agreed in principle to provide preferential market access for 100 Nepali primary and agriculture products.
Similarly, both the sides have agreed to finalize draft agreement to operate Kathmandu-Dhaka bus service at the earliest.
According to Nepal Tourism Board, the number of Bangladeshi tourists visiting Nepal increased by around 10 percent to 17,563 in 2011compared to a year earlier.
In a bid to enhance transport connectivity between the two countries, Bangladeshi officials have expressed commitment to upgrade transport infrastructures, including road and rail transport, to Bangladesh ports at the earliest.
Nepal and Bangladesh have also agreed to make necessary groundwork for setting uniformity on standard of quality, quarantine system and health related criteria for traded goods as well as recognize quality certification in respective countries.
Bangladesh has also agreed to provide on arrival visa for Nepalis. Nepal is already providing such facility to Bangladeshis. Dhaka has also agreed to take initiative in promoting currencies of both countries for trade and tourism.
Both the sides have also agreed to facilitate traders to organize single country trade fair in each other countries, introducing joint tourist package to promote tourism in both countries and harmonization in working hours in customs points.
Nepali business people have hailed the agreement. “We welcome the Bangladesh government´s decision to provide zero-tariff facility to Nepali agricultural products and bring two Bangladeshi ports into operations for bilateral trade,” Suraj Vaidya, president of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), told Republica on Monday.
Vaidya also welcomed Dhaka´s decision of providing on arrival visas to Nepalis.
Nepal exports to Bangladesh during the first 10 months of 2011/12 dropped by a whopping 48.7 percent to Rs 1.69 billion compared to export figures in the same period of 2010/11, thanks to sharp drop in export of lentils - Nepal´s largest export to Bangladesh.
“There have been good agreements in the past; but the implementation aspect was weak. We want these agreements to be implemented sincerely,” added Vaidya.
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