The leading industrial bodies of India and Bangladesh, FICCI and FBCCI on April 8, 2017 came up with a 6-point agenda to boost trade and investment between the SE Asian neighbours.
This agenda includes setting up joint task forces on tariff and non-tariff barriers and promoting Indian investments in Bangladesh in areas of:
- Infrastructure
- Educational
- Healthcare
- Power
- Tourism
The agenda also included connectivity initiatives for expansion of sub-regional cooperation among BBIN (Bhutan-Bangladesh- India-Nepal) countries to cover links through road, rail, rivers, sea, transmission lines, petroleum pipelines and digital.
In addition, it included pursuing joint investments and a road-map for cooperation in the Bay of Bengal in exploration of hydrocarbons, marine resources, deep sea fishing, preservation of marine ecology and disaster management.
It also included collaboration in knowledge sharing to facilitate innovation and research and forming a partnership on skill development.
The agenda was released on the occasion of the visit of Ms. Sheikh Hasina, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh is on a sound economic footing with forex reserves of USD 32 billion, adding that the government has decided to retain USD 25 billion and release the rest for investments overseas with India emerging as a favoured destination.
