The United States briefed Dhaka on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), and Bangladesh welcomed additional information on the supply chain resilience and decarbonization pillars of the IPEF, according to a joint statement.
Both countries share a common vision of a free, open, inclusive, peaceful, and secure Indo-Pacific region with shared prosperity for all.
Bangladesh also sought US technical assistance to sustainably explore its ocean resources and further develop its blue economy in pursuit of environmental protection and economic prosperity.
Bangladesh also highlighted that re-starting non-stop flights between New York City and Dhaka is a high priority. Both sides are committed to taking the next steps to move this forward at the earliest.
Those were discussed at the Second U.S.-Bangladesh High-Level Economic Consultation in Washington, DC on Thursday.
US Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment, Jose W. Fernandez, and Adviser for Private Industry and Investment to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Salman F. Rahman, convened and co-chaired the meeting.
President Joe Biden launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) in Tokyo on May 23 with a dozen initial partners: Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Together, those countries represent 40% of world GDP.
According to the White House, the IPEF is part of President Joe Biden’s commitment “to putting American families and workers at the center of our economic and foreign policy, while strengthening our ties with allies and partners for the purpose of increasing shared prosperity and for the purpose of defining the coming decades for technological innovation in the global economy — especially in the most vital region for the coming decades, the Indo-Pacific,”.
US foreign direct investment in the region totaled more than $969 billion in 2020 and has nearly doubled in the last decade. The US is the leading exporter of services to the region, helping fuel regional growth.
Trade with the Indo-Pacific supports more than three million American jobs and is the source of nearly $900 billion in foreign direct investment in the United States. With 60 percent of the world’s population, the Indo Pacific is projected to be the largest contributor to global growth over the next 30 years.
During the high-level meeting, the participants celebrated the strong and growing economic partnership between the United States and Bangladesh, a highlight of our 50 years of bilateral relations. The United States highlighted Bangladesh’s evident potential to be a regional leader in digital trade and noted with appreciation steps taken by Bangladesh to adopt a transparent regulatory environment to secure broad-based foreign investment in its bourgeoning digital economy sector.
Bangladesh welcomed investment from US firms in Bangladesh, including in the renewable energy, telecommunications, and agricultural and food processing sectors and to its economic zones.
Bangladesh warmly welcomed a US concept of a US-Bangladesh Women’s Council, which would enhance women’s employment, entrepreneurship, and access to educational opportunities in support of a more equitable future. Both sides decided to coordinate more on implementing existing transparent commercial policies and consistent enforcement of intellectual property rights in Bangladesh.
The United States acknowledged the government of Bangladesh’s progress with respect to workers’ rights in Bangladesh in, for example, instituting safety reforms in the garment export sector, simplifying trade-union registration, developing publicly accessible trade-union database, establishment of helplines to receive complaints, digitalising labor inspection and strengthening labor courts.
The United States urged Bangladesh to take further steps to adhere to internationally recognised labor rights standards, including those developed by Bangladesh for its International Labor Organization (ILO) road map.
Bangladesh expressed its commitment to swiftly pass necessary reforms and fully implement the four priority areas of the ILO roadmap.
Bangladesh also expressed a commitment to address other areas of labor reform including improving workers’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining in export processing zones (EPZs) and gradually in other sectors across Bangladesh’s economy.
Both sides decided that the effective implementation and enforcement of international labor standards can help the economies of both the countries recover from the pandemic, broaden economic gains, and unlock further economic potential with other trade partners by creating an attractive business environment.
Bangladesh expressed interest in receiving U.S. development finance from DFC for a wide range of infrastructure opportunities.
The United States affirmed it would consider Bangladesh’s request while emphasising the need for Bangladesh to implement the ILO road map.
The United States commended Bangladesh on its admirable response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bangladesh has fully vaccinated over 76 percent of its population and partially vaccinated over 99 percent of the eligible population.
Bangladesh expressed gratitude for the over 64 million vaccine doses the United States donated, in partnership with COVAX, to support Bangladesh’s COVID-19 response efforts.
The United States welcomed Bangladesh’s interest in the United States developed COVID-19 Prioritized Global Action Plan for Enhanced Engagement so that Bangladesh could share best practices with the world on its effective vaccination of its population and Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN).
The United States also highlighted Bangladesh’s role as a global climate leader.
Both sides emphasised the importance of delivering on and strengthening existing commitments in the lead-up to COP 27.
The United States encouraged Bangladesh to consider joining the Global Methane Pledge, urge major emitting countries to do more on climate initiatives, and continue outlining adaptation priorities.
Bangladesh welcomed USAID’s climate support, including a review of embankments to assess the feasibility of nature-based solutions to protect critical bio-diverse areas from degradation.
Bangladesh encouraged U.S. companies to invest in clean energy to help Bangladesh advance on its COP nationally determined contribution targets for climate.
