Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) are willing to collaborate to expand trade between Japan and Bangladesh.
Faruque Hassan, president of the BGMEA, said this after a delegation of Jetro met with him at BGMEA Gulshan office on November 15, reads a press release.
The delegation included South Asian regional representative of Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and Director of Jetro New Delhi Takuma Otaki, Jetro Country Representative Yuji Ando, Jetro Representative Kazunori Yamada and Senior Director at Jetro Dhaka SM Shariful Alam.
BGMEA Vice President Shahidullah Azim, Vice President (Finance) Khandoker Rafiqul Islam, and Director Md Imranur Rahman were also present at the meeting.
They discussed possible avenues of expanding trade between the two countries.
The Jetro team and BGMEA leaders expressed willingness to organize a webinar to initiate communication between businessmen in Bangladesh and Japan, particularly those who are involved in the fashion industry.
Bangladeshi businessmen will be able to showcase strengths and capabilities through the webinar while Japanese buyers and investors will get the opportunity to explore their trade potential in Bangladesh.
They also held discussions on possible Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) so that Bangladesh could retain its access to the Japanese market in the post-LDC era.
Faruque Hassan stressed on the importance of fibre diversification and investment in the non-cotton textile sector in Bangladesh and urged Jetro to encourage Japanese businessmen to invest in this area.
He also sought cooperation of Jetro in developing the capacity of the BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology (BUFT) in textile, apparel, fashion and business through collaboration with leading Japanese universities and fashion institutes.
Japan and Bangladesh will celebrate 50 years of their diplomatic relations in 2022.
They also spoke about organizing special programs to celebrate the occasion.
The programs will include local events and roadshows and a single country fair in Japan.
Source : Dhaka Tribune
