Bangladesh-India Joint Economic Commission

The bilateral body loses steam

No meetings in 13 years

The Bangladesh-India Joint Economic Commission (JEC) has lost its raison d’être, since different ministries of both governments have formed a number of bilateral committees and the two countries have opened up other avenues of bilateral cooperation, said sources at the Economic Relations Division (ERD). No JEC meeting between Bangladesh and India has been held in the past 13 years, they pointed out, although it is supposed to be convened once every two years. The last meeting of the JEC was held in 2003. Only six meetings of the Bangladesh-India JEC have been held after its formation in 1982, ERD officials noted. Neither Bangladesh nor India has offered to hold a JEC meeting after the last one held in 2003, ERD officials said.
The significance of JEC meetings has faded over the years as many new joint commissions and committees of cooperation have been formed between the two countries, an ERD official told The Independent. The official cited the example of different platforms under the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) that discuss bilateral and regional issues, the Joint River Commission, etc. Earlier, only issues such as trade deficit and barriers had been discussed at the JEC meeting.
He explained that a JEC is needed for those countries with which Bangladesh has no other forum of cooperation. JEC meetings even between Bangladesh and Pakistan are being held every two years, he pointed out. A JEC meeting is a platform where bilateral commercial and economic topics are discussed to devise ways to explore and strengthen cooperation. JEC meetings have been of great importance in removing obstacles to trade between countries.
Bangladesh recorded a trade deficit of Tk. 53.80 billion in July 2016. The balance of trade in Bangladesh averaged Tk. -22.22 billion from 1976 to 2016, reaching an all-time high of Tk. 0 billion in April 1977 and a record low of Tk. -128.40 billion in January 2012. The balance of trade is reported by the Bangladesh Bank. Bangladesh has recorded sustained trade deficits since 1976 mainly due to the high value of imports. Its main imports are petroleum and oil (11 per cent of the total imports); food items (11 per cent); and textiles (10 per cent). Its main exports are readymade garments, accounting for 80 per cent of export revenues.

Bangladesh-India Joint Economic Commission

The bilateral body loses steam

No meetings in 13 years

The Bangladesh-India Joint Economic Commission (JEC) has lost its raison dtre, since different ministries of both governments have formed a number of bilateral committees and the two countries have opened up other avenues of bilateral cooperation, said sources at the Economic Relations Division (ERD). No JEC meeting between Bangladesh and India has been held in the past 13 years, they pointed out, although it is supposed to be convened once every two years. The last meeting of the JEC was held in 2003. Only six meetings of the Bangladesh-India JEC have been held after its formation in 1982, ERD officials noted. Neither Bangladesh nor India has offered to hold a JEC meeting after the last one held in 2003, ERD officials said. The significance of JEC meetings has faded over the years as many new joint commissions and committees of cooperation have been formed between the two countries, an ERD official told The Independent. The official cited the example of different platforms under the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) that discuss bilateral and regional issues, the Joint River Commission, etc. Earlier, only issues such as trade deficit and barriers had been discussed at the JEC meeting. He explained that a JEC is needed for those countries with which Bangladesh has no other forum of cooperation. JEC meetings even between Bangladesh and Pakistan are being held every two years, he pointed out. A JEC meeting is a platform where bilateral commercial and economic topics are discussed to devise ways to explore and strengthen cooperation. JEC meetings have been of great importance in removing obstacles to trade between countries. Bangladesh recorded a trade deficit of Tk. 53.80 billion in July 2016. The balance of trade in Bangladesh averaged Tk. -22.22 billion from 1976 to 2016, reaching an all-time high of Tk. 0 billion in April 1977 and a record low of Tk. -128.40 billion in January 2012. The balance of trade is reported by the Bangladesh Bank. Bangladesh has recorded sustained trade deficits since 1976 mainly due to the high value of imports. Its main imports are petroleum and oil (11 per cent of the total imports); food items (11 per cent); and textiles (10 per cent). Its main exports are readymade garments, accounting for 80 per cent of export revenues.