Bangladesh's Trade Research Articles

Comparative Legal Responses to Illicit Wildlife Trade in Bangladesh and India: Indigenous vs. Extraneous Approaches

This research examined the legal responses to illicit wildlife trade in Bangladesh and India, focusing on how these countries harmonized their domestic laws with international obligations under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). It assessed the effectiveness of Bangladesh's legal framework against wildlife trafficking and compared it to India’s advancements, particularly the Indian Wildlife Protection Amendment Act of 2022. Utilizing qualitative and doctrinal methods, the research reviewed primary and secondary sources, including statutes and international agreements. While Bangladesh faced significant challenges in enforcement and effectiveness, India strengthened its wildlife protection through stricter penalties and enhanced compliance with CITES. The research advocated for Bangladesh to adopt similar legislative reforms and improve enforcement mechanisms to better protect biodiversity and fulfill international obligations.

Illegal Wildlife Trade in Bangladesh and India: A Study of Comparative Laws

Poaching of wildlife and misuse of plant habitats were considered one of the local, small-scale activities carried out by opportunists or miscreants for the purpose of illegal trade or smuggling of certain species. However, the irony is that over the past few decades. It has progressively become a major contributor to illegal trade with a hotspot for serious crimes" including those involving wild animals. Wildlife trafficking has become a serious threat to ecosystem conservation, putting species at risk of extinction and causing loss of biodiversity. The main objective of this work is to ensure that Bangladesh's legal framework is compatible with international regimes, particularly in preventing wildlife trafficking. Additionally, the study undertook systematic research to assess Bangladesh's commitments, performance, and limitations and compare them with the situation in India. Bangladesh is classified as a riparian country under IUCN Red List criteria IV and V. The study reviewed books, journals, research articles, supplements, news, and analysis on both substantive and ancillary national laws, beyond the Wildlife Crime Convention, providing a comprehensive set of legal rules and principles governing interactions between traffickers and species.

SCENARIO ANALYSIS OF WHOLESALE AND RETAIL TRADE IN BANGLADESH: AN EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

Wholesale and retail trade is considered as one of the essential activities contributing to the domestic product, labour force and linkage between producers and consumers. The main objective of the study is to assess the status of input cost, gross output, gross value added of wholesale and retail trade in Bangladesh during the period of COVID-19 pandemic and also compare the volatility between wholesale and retail trade. The secondary data of wholesale and retail trade survey-2021 with 15,258 establishment have been collected from Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). Both the quantitative and qualitative methods were applied in this study. Scenario analysis was employed to find the current status of input cost, gross output, gross value added of wholesale and retail trade in Bangladesh. The study reveals that industrial cost was increased due to several constraints, including market issues, high labour costs, transportation issues, and logistical shortcomings. The findings of the volatility between wholesale and retail trade represent that retail businesses have more flexibility in expenses, while wholesale enterprises often have more output and value added. Finally, it has been found that gross output significantly depends on gross value addition, whereas COVID-19 affects all scenarios. The findings of this study would be helpful for the planners and policy makers of the trade sectors to take appropriate policies regarding wholesale and retail trade in Bangladesh.

Impact of Selected Factors on International Trade of Bangladesh: An Empirical Analysis

International trade is a vital driver of economic development for nations worldwide, and Bangladesh, as a developing country in South Asia, strategically utilizes trade as a key element in its economic growth agenda. This paper examines the impact of internal factors on Bangladesh's international trade, employing Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis to analyze data spanning from 2000 to 2022. The study focuses on factors such as GDP, inflation, real interest rates, unemployment rates, government expenditure, population growth, remittance inflows, government expenditure in education, macroeconomic management, and tariff rates. The results reveal a strong statistical significance between the predictors and Bangladesh's international trade volume. Notably, personal remittances, government expenditure in education, and macroeconomic management index exhibit significant influence on international trade. The findings provide valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders to enhance Bangladesh's trade performance, contributing to its sustainable economic development.

Enhancing Chittagong Port: Fostering a Future-Ready Supply Chain

An essential lifeline to Bangladesh's robust economy, Chittagong Port in Bangladesh, was the subject of an insightful visit in May 2023. An expert team comprising three academicians (professors) and two industry experts from the Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association (BAFFA) embarked on an explorative journey to understand the heart of the nation's supply chain and examine the intricate operations that make this port an economic powerhouse. Key functions like cargo handling, container operations, vessel loading and unloading, ship navigation, radar, and speed log were meticulously assessed for their complex contribution to both local and global trade dynamics. A comprehensive inspection of these operations showcased their importance in the seamless flow of goods, which establishes the port as the backbone of Bangladesh's trade ecosystem. It was previously identified the port as a critical logistical hub in the region.

A low-carbon and hunger-free future for Bangladesh: An ex- ante assessment of synergies and trade-offs in different transition pathways

Feeding and nourishing a growing global population in Bangladesh is a major challenge in a changing climate. A multi-level participatory scenario approach with corresponding modeling and decision support tools is developed and applied to support decision-makers in developing scenario-guided enabling policy for food security in the future under climate change. The results presented in this paper show how, under different scenarios, the agri-food system may transform in the next decade as a result of the interaction of intertwined institutional, technological, and market drivers in Bangladesh. For scenario building, the food and agriculture community was brought together with the climate and energy community. We also experimented with different ways to bring voices that are often less included in policymaking, such as poor rural communities and youth. The scenario quantification is performed by MAGNET, a GTAP-based multi-sector and multi-region computable general equilibrium model. The simulation results depict a comprehensive picture of corresponding and varied pressures on agricultural resources and opportunities for economic development and trade in Bangladesh. Finally, we did an ex-ante assessment of the trade-offs and synergies between zero-hunger- and zero-emission-related targets within the Bangladesh Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under the developed scenarios.

Exploring market-based wildlife trade dynamics in Bangladesh

AbstractWildlife markets are hotspots for illegal wildlife trade, with traders operating as a result of weak monitoring and law enforcement. Knowledge of species traded, sources, and routes used for transport is needed to identify illegal wildlife trade markets and intervene to stem trade. We conducted surveys in 13 wildlife markets across Bangladesh every month during January-December 2019 to assess the abundance and diversity of wildlife taxa traded and the factors driving this trade. Passeriformes, Columbiformes, Psittaciformes, Artiodactyla, Carnivora and Testudines were the most traded orders. Wildlife markets were also centres of trade for high-value species, including the tigerPanthera tigris, crocodileCrocodylus porosusand tortoises. In hill markets and peri-urban markets the most commonly sold species originated from nearby forests, whereas urban markets included both native species and exotic species sourced internationally. Market type, road links to the market, the presence of law enforcement agencies, proximity to a port and form of sale (live animals or byproducts) all significantly influenced what is being traded. Trade of mammals, reptiles, high-value wildlife species and threatened species was less common in markets proximal to law enforcement agencies. Markets close to seaports or airports were more likely to sell mammals, threatened species and high-value wildlife. Based on our results, we recommend a set of interventions to help reduce market-based wildlife trade in Bangladesh.

Forecasting Japan- Bangladesh Trade and Investment Scenario in Post-Covid Period

Forecasting Japan- Bangladesh Trade and Investment Scenario in Post-Covid Period Nayeema Nusrat Chowdhury, Nashia Zaman, Jean-Baptiste Mohamadou Bassirou SANFO Published: July 2022 Volume 1, Number 2 (July 2022) DOI : http://doi.org/10.55156/jjsem.jul2202 ABSTRACT Notes on Contributors View Full Articles

Ornamental aquarium organisms trade in Bangladesh

The study was conducted in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and was carried out for twelve (12) months from March 2018 to February 2019 with a view to represent the trading diagram of ornamental fish in Bangladesh. During the current study 270 varieties (230 freshwater, 36 marine, and 4 brackish water) belong to 149 species (109 freshwater 73%, 36 marines 24%, and 4 brackish water 3%) of 38 families under 10 orders and 6 crossbreeds’ varieties were recorded. Considering the number of species maximum 83 (55.70%) was found under the order Perciformes followed by Cypriniformes 24 (16.10%), Characiformes 18 (12.08%), Siluriformes 11 (7.38%), Osteoglossiformes 05 (3.35%), Atheriniformes 03 (2.01%), Lepisosteiformes 02 (1.34%), Polypteriformes 01 (0.6%), Myliobatiformes 01 (0.67%) and Cyprinodontiformes 01 (0.67%). The top five popular species were guppy (13.16%) followed by goldfish (12.39%), molly (8.54%), angelfish (6.23%), platy (5.93%). Most of the ornamental fish species were imported by importers from Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, and Japan on the basis of demand. Then the imported shipment of aquarium fish and fish products was distributed among Dhaka Katabon fish shops, wholesalers, and retailers, according to their given order. After that, these were again distributed locally, to aquarium shops, breeders, ornamental fish farms all over the country. General customers and hobbyists purchase ornamental fish and aquarium products from local aquarium shops and businesses. The increasing tendency of the number of fish species was 5.96 times in the last 15 years and 3.31 times in the last 10 years. Local farms and aquarists’ breeders bred 76 varieties under 23 species due to its high demand and profitability. Pricing varied on varieties, species, size, and breeding status (local or abroad), availability and ranged from BDT 40.00-80,000.00 per pair. Considering the findings, aquarium fisheries is highly profitable at present and it will be a potential sector in Bangladesh.

21st CENTURY INDIA AND BANGLADESH BETWEEN CONSIDERING TRADE RELATION OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES

India Bangladesh Trade Relations, Perspectives E-Commerce both India and Bangladesh can benefit greatly from the development of trade and commerce by harnessing their position and creating a business-friendly environment. The economic and trade activities of the two countries will create employment opportunities and improve the living standards of the people of the region. In addition, the development of infrastructure for commercial purposes positively impacts the communication of people in the region and on the overall human resources. Bangladesh has the opportunity to enter such a large market in India with its products; In the same way, India and Bangladesh can benefit by investing in various large-scale development projects. The two countries will stand on a strong foundation in the economic structure through mutual understanding, trust and common business solutions. Bilateral alternate and funding furnish massive possibilities for accelerating enlargement and reducing poverty. Bangladesh can moreover, in addition, choose out to export some distance more, for example, to India‘s big market, and Indian firms ought to make investments in Bangladesh, benefiting from significant and as a substitute a pinnacle notch deal heaps plenty much less immoderate priced labor, and re-export to India as excellent as high-quality countries Relation between India and Bangladesh considering trade opportunities in E-commerce age and there are enough possibilities for alternate in services.

Commentary on Pakistan Bangladesh Trade Relations

Commentary on Pakistan Bangladesh Trade Relations

Estimating the Magnitude of Illicit Cigarette Trade in Bangladesh: Protocol for a Mixed-Methods Study.

The illicit tobacco trade undermines the effectiveness of tobacco tax policies; increases the availability of cheap cigarettes, which, in turn, increases tobacco use and tobacco related deaths; and causes huge revenue losses to governments. There is limited evidence on the extent of illicit tobacco trade particularly cigarettes in Bangladesh. The paper presents the protocol for a mixed-methods study to estimate the extent of illicit cigarette trade in Bangladesh. The study will address three research questions: (a) What proportion of cigarettes sold as retail are illicit? (b) What are the common types of tax avoidance and tax evasion? (c) Can pack examination from the trash recycle market be considered as a new method to assess illicit trade in comparison to that from retailers and streets? Following an observational research method, data will be collected utilizing empty cigarette packs from three sources: (a) retailers; (b) streets; and (c) trash recycle market. In addition, a structured questionnaire will be used to collect information from retailers selling cigarettes. We will select post codes as Primary Sampling Unit (PSU) using a multi-stage random sampling technique. We will randomly select eight districts from eight divisions stratified by those with land border and non-land border; and within each district, we will randomly select ten postcodes, stratified by rural (five) and urban (five) PSU to ensure maximum geographical variation, leading to a total of eighty post codes from eight districts. The analysis will report the proportions of packs that do not comply with the study definition of illicit. Independent estimates of illicit tobacco are rare in low- and middle-income countries such as Bangladesh. Findings will inform efforts by revenue authorities and others to address the effects of illicit trade and counter tobacco industry claims.

Why Is Family-Oriented Organ Transplantation Policy and Practice Necessary for Bangladesh?

In the West, in countries such as the US and UK, people are equally encouraged to donate organs both to their relatives and nonrelatives. In practice, although family is the priority in the US and UK, anybody can donate organs to anyone else lawfully. Contrastingly, in Bangladesh, people are only legally allowed to donate organs for transplantation to close relatives. Bangladesh’s living organ transplantation policy and practice is in stark contrast with the Western secular biomedical perspective. In this artcile, I address that the notion of individual freedom and liberty in regard to the donation of organs for transplantation in the West is consistent with secular culture and biomedical perspectives, but such biomedical policy and practice is at odds with the Bangladeshi Muslim culture, socio-economic reality and biomedical perspective. As Bangladesh is a family-oriented collective society, the kinship relation and strong familial bonds may encourage relatives into donating organs to a patient. More than 20% of people still live below the poverty line, and the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed poor people into extreme poverty. The practice of allowing unrelated altruistic donors as is done in the West and Iran, or even in the special circumstance in Paksitan, the act of donating organs will comprehensievly increase organ trade in Bangladesh, which in turn will cause more harms than benefits. This study conludes that the government should uphold family-oriented biomedical policy and practice in Bangladesh until poverty is eliminated. It implies that patients who do not have close relatives, or whose poetntial relative donors are medically unsuitable for transplantations should wait for deceased organs for transplantation.
 

Estimating Unrecorded International Trade of Alcohol and Forgone Revenue in Bangladesh

This study attempted to estimate the value of unrecorded liquor trade in Bangladesh. In addition, tried to estimate the revenue government lost through unrecorded liquor trade. Globally, a significant share of liquor trade takes place through informal or illegal channels and remain unrecorded. In Bangladesh, average annual per capita alcohol consumption reached 0.9 liters in 2016. About 3.5% of the male and 1% of the female adult Bangladeshi population regularly intake alcoholic beverages. Estimated demand for liquor in Bangladesh was nearly 2.5 million liters in 2016, whereas, legally permitted level of consumption was only 0.10 million liters. As both production and import of liquor is highly regulated, trade through informal channels meet the excess demand in Bangladesh. In this paper, using official data from the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC), Bangladesh, we estimate the market value of unrecorded liquor production and trade. We find that the estimated annual value of unrecorded consumption of liquor from domestic production is nearly between USD 11 million and USD 28 million; while, unrecorded trade of liquor is nearly between USD 120 million and USD 190 million. Hence, the government is losing potential revenue equivalent to about USD 0.9 million to USD 2.2 million at production stage and USD 9.5 million to USD 15.2 million at import stage.

Bangladesh's Trade with Asia: What Do Gravity Models Tell Us?

External trade has played a crucial role in Bangladesh’s strong economic growth and structural transformation, in the backdrop of rising prosperity in Asia as a whole. This paper examines the effect of national incomes and trade costs of three key Asian sub-regions—which “powered” the overall growth and prosperity in Asia as a whole—on Bangladesh’s external trade. The paper used the gravity model of international trade to test its validity in explaining Bangladesh’s trade with the sub-regions. Alternative empirical specifications of the model were econometrically estimated. The parameter estimates indicate that the central hypothesis of the gravity model is valid, i.e., trade between any two countries is directly proportional to their national incomes and inversely proportional to their trade costs. In line with these predictions, Bangladesh’s trade with the three key Asian sub-regions were found to be positively related to their GDPs and inversely related to trade costs. The predictive power of the estimated gravity models is also high. The statistical tests relevant to the econometric estimation of the specified model and the data used were conducted to ensure that the parameter estimates were robust. The model thus provides a solid basis for forecasting medium-term trade growth with the key Asian sub-regions, and hence it has a value to Bangladesh’s planners and policymakers. The results also imply that Bangladesh should pay greater attention to reviving trade (and industry) reforms to benefit from growing prosperity in its continental neighbourhood.

Bureaucratic Efficiency as Determinant of Trade Openness in SAARC Countries

The study explores how bureaucratic efficiency effects international trade in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and Srilanka. A composite indicator of government effectiveness is used to measure bureaucratic efficiency and model is estimated by using the SYS-GMM. It is well recognized that bureaucratic efficiency is vital to the enhancement of trade, whereas the result shows that a negative relationship exists between bureaucratic efficiency and trade openness. Similarly, encouraging link exists between government size and international trade as the government provides different services to enhance the trade at the international market.

DNA analysis of elasmobranch products originating from Bangladesh reveals unregulated elasmobranch fishery and trade on species of global conservation concern.

Trade involving elasmobranch products in Bangladesh is a four-decade-long practice in large scale and there is little understanding of its impact on species composition, population, and subsequent conservation. Capacity for monitoring and identification is lacking in landing and shark processing centres. A rapid survey and collection of tissue samples were performed in three landings and nine shark processing centres between 2016 and 2017 in the south-eastern coastal region of Bangladesh. Sequencing for a 707-bp fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was used to assess the taxonomic status and species composition from 71 elasmobranch tissue samples collected from the shark processing centre only. Good quality COI sequences were obtained for 34 specimens representing 21 species—the majority of which are threatened with extinction. A total of ten species of sharks (Carcharhinus brevipinna, C. amboinensis, C. leucas, C. sorrah, C. amblyrhynchoides, Chiloscyllium burmensis, Galeocerdo cuvier, Rhincodon typus, Scoliodon laticaudus, and Sphyrna lewini), eleven species of rays (Aetomylaeus maculatus, Gymnura poecilura, Mobula mobular, M. kuhlii, Neotrygon indica, Pateobatis uarnacoides, Rhinoptera javanica, and R. jayakari), including three species of guitarfish (Glaucostegus granulatus, G. obtusus, and G. typus), were identified. Four species (14.7% of samples) were found to be listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in Appendix II. Sixteen species (59% of the specimens) were threatened with extinction according to IUCN Red List, whereas 41% were data deficient or not assessed. The results have important implications for the management of regional fisheries and the conservation of elasmobranchs as they 1) represent a preliminary understanding of elasmobranch diversity in trade; 2) depict a lack of awareness and monitoring; and 3) demonstrate a need for urgent monitoring and regulation of elasmobranch trade in Bangladesh.

Unfolding Bangladesh-India maritime connectivity in the Bay of Bengal region: a Bangladesh perspective

ABSTRACTThe paper analyses Bangladesh-India maritime connectivity in the Bay of Bengal region from a Bangladesh perspective. It aims at contributing to emerging literature on policy studies on maritime issues. It argues that to a larger extent, stability, prosperity and progress of Bangladesh depend on exploring and exploiting her untapped marine resources in the Bay of Bengal region. More than 90 per cent of Bangladesh's trade takes place through the sea. At the same time, there are growing maritime issues and concerns in the Bay of Bengal region that Bangladesh and India can jointly address. Consequently, the paper argues that it is of paramount interest for both Bangladesh and India to deepen their bilateral maritime connectivity in order to promote maritime cooperation. Areas and possibilities of maritime connectivity are visible from blue economy to joint research promotion. However, that connectivity needs to be based on reciprocity and mutual respect, but not on a zero sum pattern.

Bangladesh Trade with India: Trends and Patterns

Bangladesh has a large and persistent trade deficit with its neighboring country India over the years. This paper explored the trends and patterns of trade between these two countries using both aggregated and disaggregated data. More specifically, it examined the relative position of the two countries in global trade, explores the overall trend in exports to and imports from India, and the trend in trade balance using aggregate level data. Further, utilizing some disaggregated data, analysis is conducted regarding the commodity composition of Bangladesh exports to and imports from India by major product categories. Additionally, the paper estimates revealed comparative advantage (RCA) to reflect inter-industry trade based on comparative advantage by HS-2 digit commodity groups. The paper finds that India has a much stronger position in the global trade vis-A -vis Bangladesh and that India strongly dominates Bangladesh in bilateral trade, resulting in a very large and persistent trade deficit with India. At a disaggregated level, the paper finds that Bangladesh has comparative advantage in some products whereas India has comparative advantage relatively in more product categories.

Against a Regulated Market in Human Organs: Ethical Arguments and Ethnographic Insights from the Organ Trade in Bangladesh

While organ transplantation is often highly successful in saving lives, it has created an illicit, but thriving, trade in human organs, including kidneys, livers, and corneas sourced from living bodies of the desperate poor. Based on challenging ethnographic fieldwork with seventy organ sellers, along with a group of recipients, brokers, and doctors, this article explains how organ trade results in violence, exploitation, and suffering against the vulnerable, who sell their live organs on the black market of Bangladesh. In opposition to allowing a “regulated organ market,” I argue that such a market is not a magic bullet that by itself would eliminate deception, coercion, and corruption that exist in the illegal trade of vital organs, nor would it ensure equity, rights, and justice to organ sellers. Instead, a regulated market would exacerbate, institutionalize, and normalize violence, exploitation, and suffering against impoverished populations. I, therefore, conclude that organ trade needs to be condemn...