Bangladesh and South Korea have agreed to establish a joint government–private sector working group to identify investment opportunities and recommend business reforms, seeking to turn the conclusion of negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) into stronger trade and investment ties.
The group will involve relevant government agencies and chambers of commerce, with a focus on priority sectors, business facilitation and private-sector engagement, including through public–private partnerships (PPPs).
The agreement was reached at a meeting in Seoul on 2 November between Bangladesh Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and South Korean Trade Minister Jung-sung Park.
Bangladesh wants to broaden its economic partnership with South Korea beyond textiles and garments into technology, manufacturing and infrastructure. During the visit, the delegation held separate discussions with Hyundai Glovis, Hanwha Ocean and Samsung Electronics on potential business and investment opportunities.
“We now have an opportunity to move beyond the traditional textile and garments-based partnership and build a broader, technology-driven economic relationship with Korea,” Amir Khosru said.
He identified electronics and semiconductors, shipbuilding and maritime industries, renewable energy, artificial intelligence, and digital and creative industries as emerging areas of cooperation. Other priorities include energy, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, agro-processing, logistics, advanced manufacturing and infrastructure.
The minister outlined measures to improve Bangladesh’s investment climate, including the digitalisation and automation of capital repatriation, cutting customs duties on raw materials for electronics from 26 per cent to zero, and streamlining customs and port procedures. He also encouraged Korean businesses to use government-to-government and PPP arrangements for strategic infrastructure, energy and other priority projects.
Jung-sung Park reaffirmed South Korea’s commitment to its longstanding partnership with Bangladesh and raised issues affecting Korean companies operating in the country. The Korean side agreed to send a consolidated list of their concerns to Bangladesh for consideration and follow-up.
At Hyundai Glovis, discussions with President Lee Kyu-bok and senior officials covered logistics, port development and the automotive sector. The delegation highlighted opportunities in logistics hubs, ports, economic and free trade zones, automotive supply chains and smart logistics. The company expressed strong interest in exploring the market, and both sides agreed to form working-level teams to advance potential cooperation.
Talks with Hanwha Ocean focused on shipbuilding, ship repair and dry-docking, maritime infrastructure and floating storage and regasification unit projects. The company proposed starting with ship repair, maintenance and retrofitting before moving into higher-value shipbuilding and other maritime activities. Both sides agreed to pursue further technical discussions and follow-up visits.
The delegation also met Samsung Electronics President Kim Woo-june and senior officials to discuss electronics manufacturing, artificial intelligence, digital connectivity and workforce development.
Amir Khosru encouraged Samsung to consider expanding its operations in Bangladesh and introducing advanced technology solutions. Kim expressed interest in exploring greater cooperation.
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Rehan Asif Asad, Prime Minister’s Special Assistant for Investment and Capital Market Affairs Tanvir Shahriar Ghani, Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky and senior ERD and Invest Bangladesh officials attended the bilateral meeting.
Amir Khosru said the next phase of the partnership should deliver higher trade and investment, technology transfer, industrial diversification and quality employment, while deepening Bangladesh’s integration into global value chains.
