Ticfa meet today: Dhaka again to urge duty-free access for apparel
Dhaka is gearing up to present a formal request to the United States urging for duty-free and quota-free access to the American market for apparel manufactured in Bangladesh using US-grown cotton.
This request will be made during the upcoming Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (TICFA) Council meeting scheduled for today in Dhaka, as per sources within the commerce ministry.
Additionally, Bangladesh plans to appeal to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for streamlining the registration process for pharmaceutical products originating from Bangladesh, sources revealed.
Similar requests were put forth by Bangladesh during the previous TICFA meeting held in Washington last November. However, there was no response from the US side at that time.
An official from the commerce ministry highlighted the keen interest of the United States in boosting cotton exports to Bangladesh. Consequently, Bangladesh has eliminated the requirement for double fumigation on cotton imports from the US, leading to a substantial surge in cotton imports from the country.
According to data provided by the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association, the market share of US cotton in Bangladesh has risen from 9% to approximately 14% over the past two years, following the removal of the double fumigation requirement.
Bangladesh aims to present a compelling case for the United States to grant duty-free export privileges to Ready-Made Garment (RMG) products manufactured in Bangladesh using US-imported cotton. However, Bangladesh has opted not to pursue reinstatement of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) facility in the US market.
A delegation from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has already arrived in Bangladesh to participate in the TICFA meeting, scheduled to convene this afternoon in the conference room of the Ministry of Commerce.
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