Diplomatic Correspondent:  Bangladesh and Sri Lanka should tap the immense potentials of blue economy and tourism of Bangladesh for the win-win development of both the countries.

This was revealed at a meeting between President of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) Rizwan Rahman and High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in Bangladesh Prof Sudharshan DS Seneviratne at DCCI Gulshan Center in the city, said a press release.

During the meeting, Rizwan Rahman said manufacturing and service sectors of Bangladesh are high potential for the foreign investors where Sri Lankan entrepreneurs can invest in Bangladesh.

He mentioned that bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka reached US$ 165.04 million in FY 2020-21, where export and import was US$ 47.32 million and US$ 117.72 million respectively.

Dhaka Chamber President said that Bangladesh mainly exports pharmaceuticals, RMG and seeds, on the other hand imports machinery, textiles, chemical, mineral products, base metal etc. form Sri Lanka.

To utilize the untapped trade and investment potentials, he said, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka can sign Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and collaborate in ICT, outsourcing, tourism and engineering solutions.

He also said that Sri Lanka can be an attractive destination for Bangladeshi investors.

High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in Dhaka Prof Sudharshan DS Seneviratne said that Bangladesh has a huge potential in blue economy sector in the Bay of Bengal.

Moreover there are huge opportunities to work jointly for the win-win development of blue economy sector, he added.

He said that signing PTA with Bangladesh is in progress and he hoped that soon both governments can be able to sign it.

If the performance of PTA is good then initiative can be taken to sign FTA in future, he added.

He also expressed his hope to increase the bilateral trade volume to US$ 1 billion in next five years.

He also invited Bangladeshi investors to invest in tourism, agriculture, shipping and logistic sector in Sri Lanka.

First Secretary (Commercial) High Commission of Sri Lanka in Bangladesh Srimali Jayarathne and DCCI Senior Vice President Arman Haque were also present during the meeting.