IMPACT OF LDC GRADUATION OF BANGLADESH ON ITS INTERNATIONAL TRADE: AN ANALYSIS

Abstract

Bangladesh reached to the threshold level of three LDC criteria (GNI, HAI and EVI) and declared to be eligible for graduation from LDC in 2018 by UN-CDP. Bangladesh will be graduated finally in 2024 following two successive triennial reviews of CDP in the year of 2021 and 2024. After the final graduation next 3 years will be transition period (CDP website). However, graduation may have some challenges particularly in international trade which are analyzed by the author in this article. It has been observed that negative impact of LDC graduation in the global business market is a great challenge for Bangladesh. Preferential trade loss, loss of special facilities under RTA, loss of special and differential treatment related under WTO obligations, loss of trade related capacity building, withdrawal of export subsidy cash incentive and TRIPS exemptions will be a great concern for Bangladesh. To mitigate the trade losses Bangladesh should strive to product diversification, productivity enhancement, improve capacity of private sector and involvement of the private sector in graduation process, pressure of private sector versus WTO provision to withdraw cash subsidy. No assessment and insufficient data for better understanding or analyzing negative impact, less preparation to mitigate challenge of LDC graduation, role of Development Partners, proper utilization of UN support in the process of graduation and less local market access in the international market and poor FTA relation of Bangladesh are some of the challenges. However, some recommendations have also been suggested in this field through this paper.