Press Release

ASSOCHAM signs cooperation pact with Bangladesh top trade body, coinciding with PM H.E. Sheikh Hasina visit to India

New Delhi, September 7th 2022: Coinciding with the ongoing visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister H.E. Sheikh Hasina to New Delhi, top industry organisations of India and Bangladesh - ASSOCHAM and FBCCI - have signed an MoU for wider business-to-business cooperation between the two countries with a common objective of boosting bilateral trade and investment.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) and Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) was signed in the presence of H.E. Mr. Tipu Munshi M.P. Hon'ble Commerce Minister of Bangladesh at India-Bangladesh Business Forum jointly organised by ASSOCHAM -FBCCI today.

The respective apex chambers of the two countries have committed themselves for regular exchange of information about the economic development of Bangladesh and India with a view to increasing bilateral trade and for the expansion of economic and industrial cooperation among their enterprises.

H.E. Mr. Tipu Munshi MP, Hon'ble Minister of Commerce of Bangladesh highlighted the special and close relations shared by India and Bangladesh, emphasizing on the need for increasing investments. He congratulated both the chambers on the MoU signing and taking such cooperative decision. Bangladesh has an amazing potential as a country for trade and commerce and it has more than 100 economic zones. India has always been the best partner and should further increase the development of bilateral relationships between both countries.

''Visit of Hon'ble Prime Minister of Bangladesh to India, H.E. Sheikh Hasina, would strengthen the mutual trade and investment potential which needs to be further leveraged amongst the two neighbours. Indian industry has been proactively engaged with their Bangladesh counterparts to step up the economic ties in a wide range of areas, including infrastructure, energy cooperation and technology transfer,'' ASSOCHAM Secretary General Mr Deepak Sood said.

Expressing confidence about a multi-fold increase in bilateral trade and investment, ASSOCHAM Immediate Past President Mr. Vineet Agarwal said, ''Bangladesh PM’s summit level talks with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi give a strong message for further strengthening the mutual engagements. The commitment to speed up negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CEPA) is indicative of great prospects of bilateral engagements''.

At the institutional level, the ASSOCHAM and FBCCI have agreed to cooperate in exchanging information about the regulatory and taxation framework in their respective countries for ease of doing business. Besides, the respective chambers would share knowledge and experiences in relation to supporting and facilitating the advancement of Small and Medium Entrepreneurs (SMEs), startup ecosystem, innovation, industry academia skill gap assessment, technical cooperation, conducting survey and research and development.

They would assist and facilitate visits of trade and economic delegations to their respective countries, rendering maximum cooperation for establishing business contacts.

Both the parties to the MoU would assist in amicable and friendly settlement of economic disputes through conciliation, negotiation, and arbitration wherever necessary considering international standards and conventions.

They would provide information and assistance to the enterprises, organizations and companies of the other country to participate in national exhibitions, international fairs, specialized exhibitions, economic and technical fairs, seminars, symposium, conferences and similar events.