Imports, exports halted at Teknaf port for 3 months, goods rotting in storage

Traders and port authorities say that goods stored at the port for export have spoiled, leading to substantial losses for exporters

For three months, trade with Myanmar through the Teknaf Land Port in Cox's Bazar has been suspended. As a result, hundreds of trucks full of export goods are wasting away in the port area, hitting importers and exporters hard.

It remains unclear when this standstill will end, and the port's daily wage workers, truck drivers, and sailors are spending their days in uncertainty. Many of them are wrapping up their businesses in Teknaf and shifting their operations to the port in Chattogram.

The last time a wooden boat arrived from Rakhine State’s Maungdaw, currently under the control of the Arakan Army, was Apr 12, sources say. Since then, trade at the Teknaf-Maungdaw border has been suspended.

Jasim Uddin Chowdhury, general manager (GM) of United Land Port Limited at Teknaf Land Port, says: "There was no damage to imports though the port has been idle for three months. However, various products -- including 22,850 bags of cement, 2,700 bags of potatoes, 1,090 bags of soft drinks -- stored at the port for export to Myanmar have suffered damage."

“Most of these products have been getting wet in the rain or burnt by the sun and have spoiled due to being stored for such a long time. The port authorities have faced millions of taka in losses.”

The Teknaf Land Port, which used to bustle with goods and long queues of trucks and busy workers, now stands empty and quiet. All the doors to the warehouses are locked. No ships or trawlers are carrying goods at the Naf River jetty either. It is instead being used to raise goats and ducks.

In addition to cement, potatoes and soft drinks, the storage facilities at the port also contain chips, chanachur, biscuits, and plastic products that were meant for export. All the potatoes have spoilt and the several thousand sacks of cement are also on the verge of becoming unusable.

Port trader Mohammad Alamgir said that cement and potatoes worth millions stored for export to Myanmar have been destroyed.

Hundreds of importers and exporters have suffered financial losses and they do not know why border trade was cut off, he said.

Mohammad Ullah, a representative of importer Express Agency, said the products could not be exported because they had not been approved by the Arakan Army. “No products are being allowed to enter the Teknaf Land Port from Myanmar either,” he said.

“There are cement, potatoes and some other food products in the port’s warehouses. They are almost ruined. This has caused nearly Tk 50 million in losses.”

Mohammad Ullah said, “Hundreds of port traders are in trouble because of this. Now we need government intervention to resume trade between the two countries.”

Port trader Md Abdullah said, “Some goods were stuck at the port. There were 15 carts of potatoes. All of them are spoilt.”

A row of about 20 shops in front of the land port used to bustle with the clamour of port workers. Many of them are now closed and stand silent. At least 1,500 workers at the port have lost their income due to the extended closure.

Sardar Alam, one of the port workers, said: “There are 1,500 workers at Teknaf Land Port. We are all unemployed as the port has been closed for four to five months. Everyone is struggling to provide for their families.”

Teknaf Land Port Revenue Officer Md Sohel Uddin said the port brought in Tk 6.4 billion in the 2022-23 fiscal year, Tk 4.04 billion in the 2023-24 fiscal year and Tk 1.1 billion in the 2024-25 fiscal year. No revenue has been raised at the port in the last three months.

Cox's Bazar Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Abu Morshed Khoka said, "Teknaf Land Port is one of our sources of foreign currency. If this problem can be resolved through some kind of talks, then the traders will survive. The products will then be exported through Teknaf Land Port."

Teknaf Land Port Customs Officer Md Sohel Uddin said, "Alongside different government authorities, we are also trying to make the port operational. A meeting was also held with all the stakeholders in the district.

“But, in the meantime, the potatoes meant for export have also rotted. The cement is also spoiling."