The issue of restoration of Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) by USA that has been hanging fire for quite some time has now been taken up once again by the Speaker of Parliament, Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, recently at an event hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Dhaka, in which she urged the US to restore the trade facility while seeking AmCham’s support to this end.
Making a strong case for renewal of the facility, Shirin maintained, “All conditions set after the Rana Plaza incident have been met. But we are shocked to see that the GSP has not yet been restored,” who also called upon AmCham to cooperate with the Bangladesh Government in renewing the trade concession.
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It may be mentioned here that the trade privilege enjoyed currently by all SAARC countries barring Bangladesh, was revoked by USA in mid-2013 post the tragic Rana Plaza building collapse and Tazreen Fashions fire, which left more than 1,200 people dead. Subsequently, USA rolled out a 16-point action plan to improve the working conditions, which Bangladesh claims has been fulfilled. Washington, too, acknowledges that progress made so far in this direction but reportedly maintains more needs to be done to get the privilege back.
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In a bid to gain duty and quota-free access of Bangladeshi products to the US market in recent times, Bangladesh Ambassador in Washington Mohammad Ziauddin has reportedly met US politicians seeking their support.
Ambassador Ziauddin also reportedly called on Congressman Sander Levin, informing him that despite being the largest apparel exporter to the US, Bangladesh feels “neglected” for not getting duty-free market access.
Ziauddin also met another Congressman, Mike Kelly, seeking support in this regard. According to reports, as part of a series of engagements with the US politicians to brief them about Bangladesh’s socio-economic progresses and its relations with the US, Ziauddin reportedly told Kelly that Bangladesh, the largest apparel exporter to the US, along with other Asian LDCs do not get the market access for their products, while all 34 African LDCs, under AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act), enjoy this facility, besides pointing out that the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) may have a “negative impact” on the Asian LDCs.
The Bangladeshi Ambassador also reportedly urged the US to consider this access on the basis of “justice and equal treatment”.
