Govt plans Ctg-Yangon feeder shipping service

The government plans to introduce a feeder shipping service between Bangladesh and Myanmar to boost bilateral trade, official sources said yesterday.

Officials at the Chittagong Port and Mercantile Marine Department said the government had already asked a private shipping company to start operating its feeder container vessels on the Chittagong-Myanmar route as soon as possible to increase bilateral trade.

"A high-level meeting to this effect was held recently on this issue and if the service starts on this route, the trade gap between the two countries will come down to a great extent," they said.

The officials said the step was a follow-up to the landmark visit by Myanmar Senior General Than Shwe in December when the countries pledged to boost bilateral ties to overcome economic challenges facing them both.

"The Myanmar government has also agreed to place a container vessel on the route," they said.

Shipping sources said due to a lack of vessels, the state-owned Bangladesh Shipping Corporation was unable to provide the service immediately, so the government opted for the private HRC Shipping Lines, which is already operating feeder vessels between Chittagong and Sri Lanka as well as Malaysia.

At present, cargo from Myanmar is shipped to Chittagong through Singapore while some goods come through Teknaf border points, said Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association Chairman Farid Ahmed Chowdhury.

Imports from Myanmar include timber, maize, rice and fish, while exports include fertiliser, cement and medicines, but there are no official estimates of bilateral trade, which is said to be very small. Smuggling also takes place across the border.