BANGLADESH POISED TO TAKE OFF AS AN ECONOMIC POWER: FOREIGN ADVISER

DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 7 (BSS)- Foreign Adviser of Bangladesh caretaker government Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury today said that Bangladesh was "poised to take off as yet another new emerging Asian economic Power." He said this while inaugurating a workshop on "Regional Export Competitiveness Strategy for Asia" at a city hotel, which was jointly sponsored by the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI) and the Commonwealth Secretariat. The Foreign Adviser said that the ready-made garments industry in Bangladesh continued to perform well even after the phasing out of the Multi-fibre agreement. But it was facing non- tariff barriers in exporting to developed country markets. Speaking to the media, Dr. Iftekhar Chowdhury said: "such non-tariff barriers are unfair. Our industry should be rewarded for their performance and not punished. We do not want hand-outs from trade partners. We just want a level playing field." He also said that the socio-economic backdrops on which economy and trade are situated must also be helpful. The reforms that the caretaker government has undertaken are designed to create institutions that will provide our exports and industry exactly that kind of support, he added. If stability is continued and productivity improved, the adviser said, there is no reason why Bangladesh cannot in a matter of years be "another huge Singapore." Chaired by Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI) President Farook Sobhan the workshop was addressed by the Chairman of Board of Investment Kamaluddin Ahmed and the Head of the Trade Section of the Commonwealth Secretariat Nikhil Treebhoohun.