Bilateral agreements key to trade between India's north-east and Bangladesh: ADB

The Asian Development Bank on Tuesday said trade between the northeast and Bangladesh remained at a low level, due to the non-operationalisation of the bilateral agreements and non-tariff measures. Addressing the two-day India-Bangladesh Stakeholders' Meet here, Asian Development Bank Country Director (India Resident Mission), Kenichi Yokoyama, said the northeast is resource-rich but has a very low contribution to the economy of the region.

"Bilateral agreements provide the framework for the multi-modal movement of goods. But, the problem is that these agreements are not fully operational," he said. For better growth and prosperity in the region, the agreements need to be finalized and implemented expeditiously, Yokoyama said.

"The bilateral trade between India and Bangladesh is about USD 10 billion. India accounted for 16.4 percent of Bangladesh's imports, while NE's share is only 1.2 percent. The border trade of NE with Bangladesh has remained limited mainly due to non-tariff measures," he said.

The lender said the operationalization of transport agreements will facilitate trade between India-Bangladesh, the northeast as well as Bangladesh-Bhutan through multi-modal routes. "Given Bangladesh's export basket, the NE region can be a major trading partner. It is estimated that around 28 percent, which is USD 15 billion, of Bangladesh's import demand is for products that can be manufactured using local resources of the northeast," the official said.

Yokoyama further said that connectivity between the northeast and the rest of India via Bangladesh can reduce the distance by more than 50 percent and help boost the economy of the region. "The NE region is resource-rich, but it has a very low contribution to the Indian economy. The total exports from NE are USD 0.5 billion as against USD 500 billion of India's total exports," he added.

Citing examples, Yokoyama said Chittagong port can be reached from India through five major border crossings with Dalu, Dawki, and Sabroom having the shortest distances. "Agartala airport can be jointly operated with Bangladesh along with expansion on Bangladesh land. Geneva and Basel airports jointly operated by Switzerland and France are (also) good examples," he said.

Besides, special economic zones at border points and gateways will facilitate increased trade between the two countries, Yokoyama said. He pointed out that in response to India's request, Bangladesh has agreed to withdraw most of the port restrictions in October this year for a number of items traded through the Agartala-Akhaura port.

ADB has so far granted USD 163.76 billion in various developmental projects, including agriculture, healthcare, education, energy, transport, and urban development, across the north east.