A government delegation will leave Dhaka for Australia tonight (Saturday night) to attend the maiden meeting of the joint working group (JWG) on trade and investment under the Bangladesh-Australia Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement (TIFA).
Commerce ministry's senior secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh will lead the 12- member official team.
The JWG meeting scheduled to be held on February 22 in Canberra, Australia will focus on expansion of trade, commerce and investment between the two countries, according to officials in Dhaka.
Other members of the delegation include officials from the foreign affairs, agriculture, commerce and industries ministries, energy and mineral resources division, National Board of Revenue (NBR), Bangla-desh Investment Develop-ment Authority (BIDA), Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) and Armed Forces Division (AFD).
At the first meeting of the TIFA working group, Dhaka will keep retention of the duty free and quota free (DFQF) market access even after graduation from the least developed country (LDC) status on top of the agenda.
Dhaka will also discuss promotion of Bangladesh's green garment products through networking and linking stakeholders.
The priority list will also include consideration of the Australian government to provide mandate to specific entities to conduct government to government (G2G) business with Bangladesh for essential goods like coal, liquefied natural gas, fertiliser, oil and wheat.
Dhaka will also lay stress on exchange of visits from relevant private sector businesses in different areas- both agriculture and non-agriculture, and will seek technological support for cold chain management and registration support for exporting mango, among others.
The delegation is expected to leave Australia for Dhaka on February 25, 2022.
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