Bangladesh has again demanded the reinstatement of the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) of the US at a 6th Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (Ticfa) meeting held in Washington on Tuesday.
Both countries affirmed the importance of Bangladesh's efforts towards reforming labour laws and discussed Bangladesh's interest in the GSP restoration, according to a statement from United States Trade Representative (USTR), the chief trade negotiation body of the US.
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In line with the Biden administration's focus on a worker-centred trade policy, the US highlighted its priorities in implementing and enforcing labour laws to protect workers' rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and to a safe and healthy workplace, said the statement.
The US emphasised greater alignment between Bangladesh's domestic labour laws and international labour standards, in particular by extending fundamental rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining to the export processing zones (EPZs) and special economic zones (SEZs).
The US also expressed interest in collaborating with Bangladesh on new opportunities to promote labour rights, including eliminating forced labour in global supply chains.
The meeting was co-chaired by Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asian Affairs Christopher Wilson and Secretary to Bangladesh's commerce ministry Tapan Kanti Ghosh.
Both delegations included officials from trade, labour, agriculture, and other relevant ministries and discussed issues like the bilateral trade relationship, including market access for agricultural products, labour rights, digital trade policies, intellectual property protection and enforcement, and policies impacting the investment climate.
The two countries stressed the importance of their strong economic and trade relationship, which surpassed $10 billion in two-way trade of goods in 2021.
Both delegations affirmed their intent to boost future bilateral trade and investment opportunities following the Ticfa council meeting through sustained mutual engagement and technical work on, among others, the issues highlighted.
They discussed the progress Bangladesh made on reducing market access barriers for certain agricultural products and discussed ways to further facilitate bilateral trade of food and agricultural products through the use of science and risk-averse policies that ensure trade of safe food and agricultural products.
The two countries exchanged views on issues related to digital trade. Participants discussed how digital policies can promote inclusive economic growth, innovation, and investment.
The US advocated for the development of digital trade policies that support the participation of micro, small and medium enterprises in the digital economy, increase trust for consumers, businesses and workers, and facilitate secure cross-border data flows.
The US emphasised that new digital policies should be developed in an open and transparent manner with opportunities for public stakeholder engagement. Participants discussed ways to ensure that digital policies do not disadvantage foreign and domestic suppliers, disclose proprietary data, or increase cybersecurity risks.
Both countries recognised the importance of the protection of intellectual property (IP) and enforcement of relevant laws for incentivising innovation and promoting trade and investment.
Participants welcomed the opportunity for additional expert-level engagement between the US and Bangladesh on patent rules and border enforcement.
The US also reiterated its interest in engaging with Bangladesh on upcoming IP reforms, the statement said.
The US acknowledged the important role of investment in supporting Bangladesh's development objectives as the country graduates to middle-income status.
Ticfa participants exchanged views on the importance of predictability and transparency for both Bangladeshi and foreign companies operating in Bangladesh.
The participants decided that the next meeting of the US-Bangladesh Ticfa Council would tentatively take place in 2023 in Bangladesh, and that regular contact between officials would be maintained leading to that meeting.
The US and Bangladesh have formally engaged in meetings on trade issues since the US-Bangladesh Ticfa entered into force in 2013. The last Ticfa meeting was held in Dhaka on March 5, 2020.
Ticfa, which Bangladesh signed with the US in November 2013, provides a platform for both governments to discuss trade and investment issues, areas of cooperation and settle bilateral trade disputes through holding regular discussions.
Currently, the US does not provide the GSP to any country. The tenure of the latest GSP programme came to an end in 2020 and the US Congress has not revived it since.
The USTR suspended the GSP facility for Bangladesh on June 27, 2013 citing poor labour rights and poor workplace safety following two industrial disasters.
One was the Tazreen Fashions fire that killed more than 110 workers in November 2012 and the other was the Rana Plaza building collapse in April 2013 which killed 1,138 workers.
The then Obama administration also came up with a 16-point precondition necessitating improvements from the government and the private sector for the reinstatement of the GSP.
Bangladesh has amended its labour law and made improvements in workplace safety following guidelines of two international platforms, Accord and Alliance, and submitted the progress reports to the USTR twice for revival of the GSP.
However, the US government did not revive the GSP for Bangladesh, mentioning that further improvements were needed in labour rights.
The government continues to lobby the USTR, maintaining that massive improvements have been brought about in labour rights and workplace safety.
Before the suspension, Bangladesh used to export goods like dry fish, ceramics and tobacco items worth $24 million to the US under the GSP programme.
The US is the single largest export destination for Bangladesh, taking in goods worth over $10 billion of which more than 95 per cent are garment items.