Declines again to sell power, gas
Dhaka and Yangon have agreed to sign accords on food grain export and investment promotion and protection during the recently held joint trade commission meeting in the Myanmar capital.
Both sides also agreed to sign instruments on amended agreement to coastal and maritime shipping and finalisation of the standard operating procedures on shipping lines soon.
Myanmar, however, declined again to export power and gas to Bangladesh as the quasi-civilian government of the neighbouring country now struggles to meet its growing domestic demand for energy, a top trade official said.
The commerce secretary, Mahbub Ahmad, led a 12-member delegation at the Bangladesh-Myanmar joint trade commission meeting in Nay Pyi Taw in January 14-15.
‘We had breakthrough on signing agreements on areas like trade and shipping and importing food grain from Myanmar,’ Mahbub told New Age.
He, however, said as demands for power and energy had surged in Myanmar in recent time with the opening of its economy to foreign corporate investment, its government was not ready to export energy to any neighbouring countries including Bangladesh right at the moment.
‘Both sides appreciated the progress on finalisation of the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and Agreement on Coastal and Maritime Shipping, and emphasised the need for signing the instruments as early as possible. Myanmar side informed that they are ready to visit the ports of call in Bangladesh during the last week of February 2014,’ reads an agreed minute of the recently concluded joint trade commission meeting.
The officials at the commerce ministry said coastal shipping lines would be installed after completing the SOP and signing the amended shipping agreement.
‘Ports of call of Bangladesh and Myanmar and operational details of shipping lines will be included in the proposed SOP,’ a trade official, who attended the commission meeting, told New Age on Friday.
The proposed amendment to shipping will let private shipping lines operate through both conventional and non-conventional vessels as the existing shipping agreement between the two countries restricts privately-owned shipping companies of either country to operate, he said.
Myanmar earlier in 2012 at a joint trade commission meeting in Dhaka rejected a Bangladesh proposal to import 500MW of electricity from Myanmar.
The Bangladesh officials again raised the issue of energy import with no success.
On food grain import from Bangladesh, a draft memo, which was handed over to the Bangladesh side during the commission meeting, is now being examined by the food ministry before going ahead, an official said.
‘The MoU of Myanmar side on food grain is largely workable, except a few contradictions,’ a food ministry official said.
‘Concerning import of rice from Myanmar, the Bangladesh side has already requested and offered to purchase Myanmar’s rice by signing MoU on G2G (government-to-government) basis at the previous JTC meetings. In this connection, Myanmar side informed that Myanmar signed MoU on rice trade with one of its trading partners in 2013. So, Myanmar side provided a sample MoU to Bangladesh side at the meeting. If Bangladesh side agrees to the contents of the MoU, then the designated authorities of both sides will sign the MoU,’ said the agreed minutes of the meeting recorded on food grain.
The minutes on investment promotion and protection reads, ‘With regard to the Agreement on Investment Promotion and Protection between Bangladesh and Myanmar, Myanmar side informed that the revised draft had been sent back to Bangladesh for further comment since June 2013 through diplomatic channel. Bangladesh side responded that it is examining the revised draft sent by Myanmar and will send its views/ comments soon.’
Bangladesh exported goods worth $13.67 million against the import of $84 million to and from Myanmar in the 2012-2013 financial year.
-With New Age input
