There was corruption in the distribution of family cards for subsidised commodity sales by the state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), according to Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin.

The TCB provides 1 crore families with subsidised food items. Of the beneficiaries, some 57 lakh have TCB smart cards.

At the Pran-RFL Media Award at the Economic Reporters' Forum (ERF) in Dhaka yesterday, the commerce adviser said that the interim government has identified that many of the family cards were distributed under false pretences to ineligible individuals.

Besides, the TCB's operations have been running seriously under capacity due to neglect by relevant authorities, he said.

Uddin also said the government now aims to strengthen the TCB so that it can import goods by itself for sale in domestic markets.

Although the government provides the TCB with subsidies amounting to Tk 4,500 crore each year, its annual expenditure is actually Tk 11,500 crore, he added.

At the event, Ahsan Khan Chowdhury, chairman of Pran-RFL Group, said Bangladesh may see a surge in export orders and investment as US president-elect Donald Trump could impose higher tariffs on Chinese goods imported by the American market.

"The imposition of higher tariffs on Chinese goods by the Trump administration could prompt international businesses and investors to turn to Bangladesh," he added.

At the event, ERF and Pran-RFL honoured 10 journalists for their outstanding reporting on the agriculture sector.

Chowdhury further said that despite being a small country, the Netherlands exports agricultural products worth $100 billion annually while Thailand exports $36 billion.

"However, Bangladesh's agricultural exports stand at only $1 billion, highlighting significant room for growth," he added.

Commerce Adviser Uddin also noted that the trade tension between the US and China could create opportunities for Bangladesh.

"But Bangladesh must enhance its competitiveness to attract more foreign direct investment and increase exports," he said.

Shafiqul Alam, press secretary to the chief adviser, said essential commodities prices have been declining in domestic markets.

He also said sometimes reports are being written with wrong information regarding the prices of essential commodities.

Muhammad Abdullah, managing director of the Bangladesh Journalist Welfare Trust, said the immediate past government damaged a lot of institutions and politicised their activities.

"Even journalism was also politicised," he said while adding the ERF award will encourage journalists to improve their professional excellence.

A total of 10 journalists from various media outlets were honoured with the "ERF-PRAN Media Award-2024" for their outstanding reporting on agriculture and agro-processing.

The event was presided over by ERF President Mohammad Refayet Ullah Mirdha.

Abul Kashem, general Secretary of the ERF, moderated the programme.