Publication: Consolidating and Accelerating Exports in Bangladesh : A Policy Agenda
Date
2012-06
ISSN
Published
2012-06
Author(s)
World Bank
Abstract
For Bangladesh to become a middle-income
country, growth in exports needs to accelerate exports of
basic garments will continue to be important in the near
future, but Bangladesh's competitive advantage in this
area could erode over time. As such, looking ahead,
accelerating exports will require not only consolidating
existing strengths in basic garments but diversifying
gradually into other products such as higher value garment
and service exports. Forward-looking policymaking requires
that measures be put in place now to encourage such
diversification in future, while building on existing
strengths. How can Bangladesh make this happen? Available
research shows that the infrastructure deficit, especially
energy, as well as lack of appropriate skills and the weak
regulatory environment continue to hinder exports from
Bangladesh. These weaknesses still persist. To complement
work done so far, this report focuses on the role of trade
logistics, skills and compliance with labor standards in
consolidating existing strengths and moving to higher value
products, using the garment sector as a lens. In addition,
given the growing importance of services in world trade, the
report also examines prospects for diversifying into a
'reach sector' such as Information technology
(IT)-enabled services that can provide high-quality jobs.
This report supports the knowledge agenda of the World Bank,
which goes hand in hand with its lending role. Indeed, such
knowledge is critical for better and more effective lending
approaches, and for supporting the Bank's policy
dialogue with Government. The report forms part of the
growth and trade work program being undertaken by
Bangladesh's poverty reduction and economic management team.
Citation
“World Bank. 2012. Consolidating and Accelerating Exports in Bangladesh : A Policy Agenda. © Washington, DC. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/a9feef8a-59c7-527f-ab70-7ec6519f2325 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”