US ‘will consider GSP revival for Bangladesh’

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 10 July 2013, 06:58 AM
Updated : 10 July 2013, 07:24 AM

The United States will ‘actively consider’ revival of the Bangladesh’s GSP privilege suspended last month, Communications Minister Obaidul Quader has said.

He said he had received such ‘assurance’ during his meeting with the US embassy’s Chargé d'affaires Jon Danilowicz at his office on Wednesday.

“But it will take time,” he told waiting journalists after the meeting.

The US suspended the privilege for zero-tariff market access of a host of Bangladeshi goods to its market as a symbolic move to pressurise Bangladesh to improve working conditions and safety in the garment industry that have cost more than 1,200 lives in the past one year.

However, the US sanction does not directly affect Bangladesh's main export, multi-billion-dollar clothing to the United States, since garments are not eligible for duty cuts.

The minister said during their 40-min meeting on current issues the chargé d'affaires said they felt that Bangladesh had already undertaken some ‘corrective measures’ to improve factory safety and working conditions.

Danilowicz said the bilateral relation between the two countries was ‘all time strong now’ and they had discussed how it can be enhanced further.

The minister also said despite Bangladesh’s political impasse over the polls-time government, the US did not want to ‘impose’ anything as they understood the country’s democracy is ‘home-grown’.