The Mobile phone Industry Owners Association of Bangladesh has said the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) will not raise handset prices, warning that failure to enforce the system will push the local manufacturing industry toward premature collapse.
The association made the remarks at a press conference at the Dhaka Reporters Unity on Monday, according to a press release. It said misinformation circulating in the market was misleading consumers and retailers and fuelling unnecessary panic.
The association said NEIR would expand local production and create conditions for lower prices. Its distributors said more than 95 per cent of people engaged in the country’s marketing chain are involved in the legal phone trade, yet emotional narratives on social media are distorting facts and unsettling the market.
The association’s general secretary said the government was preparing to revise the 57 per cent import tax imposed in 2019. It argued that equal duties on imported and locally assembled handsets would undermine domestic factories and weaken investment.
The association’s President Zakaria Shahid said NEIR would curb stolen handsets, strengthen crime prevention and would not affect expatriates using legal devices.
Xiaomi Bangladesh Country Head Zia Uddin Chowdhury said allegations of tax evasion or syndicate control were misleading. He said manufacturers were working to position Bangladesh as an export-oriented mobile production hub, but ongoing disputes and misinformation were putting the sector at risk.
Bangladesh Computer Samity President and Association Treasurer Mohammad Zahirul Islam said businesses were being trapped in misinformation and disinformation. He said unchecked rumours would deepen market instability.
The association said consumers would be able to buy premium phones at prices below current official rates if grey-market imports stop. It proposed allowing protesting traders to sell locally manufactured official handsets in exchange for a 10 per cent commission.
According to the association, Bangladesh has about 12,000 mobile phone shops, and 90 per cent work with its member companies. It said only shops at Bashundhara City Market and Jamuna Future Park stayed shut during the recent protest while others across the country remained open.
Representatives from Vivo Bangladesh, Samsung manufacturer Excel Telecom and several other companies attended the event.
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission has announced that NEIR will come into force on 16 December, limiting network access to legally imported and taxed devices.
A large market has grown around phones entering under baggage rules and through the black market, leaving many shop owners holding substantial stocks. After earlier attempts to launch NEIR stalled, the sudden enforcement date prompted traders under the Mobile Business Community Bangladesh to protest and demand a delay.
Following a demonstration at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission on Sunday, traders said the regulator’s chairman assured them of further discussions involving senior government officials.
