Trade, Regional Cooperation and Global Integration

In 1999, CPD designed a programme titled Trade Policy Analysis (TPA) with a view to carrying out research in areas related to Bangladesh’s regional and global integration and to support Bangladesh’s negotiations in the WTO. Major areas of focus of the TPA programme are: (a) trade-related research, (b) preparation of Policy Briefs in support of trade policy making, (c) organisation of dialogues, (d) holding of workshops and trainings, (e) strengthening of trade-related documentation, and (f) trade-related publication and networking. The programme has received support from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Key objectives of the programme are as follows:

  • Strengthening Bangladesh’s capacity to address trade-related policy issues.
  • Raising awareness on trade issues among major stakeholder groups.
  • Strengthening capacity to formulate and implement appropriate trade policies in the context of the WTO-governed trade regime.
  • Enhancing Bangladesh’s capacity to conduct trade-related negotiations.

CPD perceives Bangladesh’s development to be critically dependent on effective regional and global integration of the country’s economy. A large part of CPD’s research activities has thus, been devoted to exploring effective ways and means to further Bangladesh’s interests and address Bangladesh’s concerns from regional and global perspectives. In the past, CPD has undertaken a number of research works to examine various aspects of bilateral economic relations with India, preferential market access under South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA), Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and Asia- Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), regional connectivity, trade facilitation in South Asia, and sub-regional cooperation in South Asia and among BCIM (Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar) countries.