The economic relationship between Bangladesh and Jordan has been immense and has high potential to grow in the coming days, said Ambassador of Bangladesh to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Nahida Sobhan in an interview with the Daily Dazzling Dawn recently.

Nahida Sobhan is also concurrently accredited to the State of Palestine and the Syrian Arab Republic.

The bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Jordan was US$ 248.5 million in 2022, according to the Department of Statistics of Jordan.

Nahida Sobhan said “As Bangladesh produces world class pharmaceuticals, the country is eying the Arab country as the Bangladesh mission in Amman  facilitated the signing of an MoU between the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) and the Arab Union of the Manufacturers of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Appliances (AUPAM) in 2023.”

Bangladesh and Jordan have shared culture, values, and ideas which include, inter alia, commitment towards women’s empowerment.

The rest part of the interview is given below:

01. How do you see the prospect of Jordan-Bangladesh bilateral relations?

Jordan was one of the first Arab countries to recognize Bangladesh, in October 1973. The bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and Jordan started from there.

Bangladesh and Jordan have shared culture, values, and ideas which include, inter alia, commitment towards women’s empowerment. Both countries cooperate with each other at bilateral and multilateral levels.

The economic relationship includes a growing bilateral trade and the contribution of tens of thousands of Bangladeshi expatriates who are the lifeline of Jordan’s promising textile and apparel industry. There are still huge untapped opportunities emanating from both countries’ rapid economic growth.

02. What is the present volume of trade between Bangladesh and Jordan? How do you see the prospect of bilateral trade in the next 5 years?

The bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Jordan was US$ 248.5 million in 2022, according to the Department of Statistics of Jordan. Bangladesh mainly imports fertilizers e.g. phosphate and potassium from Jordan and exports garments, jute, and tobacco to Jordan. Apart from widening the market of the existing products, there is potential for exporting pharmaceuticals, electronics etc. The Embassy facilitated the signing of an MoU between the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) and the Arab Union of the Manufacturers of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Appliances (AUPAM) in 2023. The Embassy expects that the people of Jordan will benefit from the low-cost medicines produced by Bangladesh in the coming years.

03. Have Bangladesh entrepreneurs set up readymade garment industries in Jordan? What are Bangladeshi workers employed in the garment sector in Jordan?

Several small and one medium-sized garment factories in Jordan are owned by Bangladeshi expatriates. The entrepreneurs of these garment factories started their careers as employees within the industry or outside and gradually moved into the industry as entrepreneurs.

There is no direct investment coming from Bangladesh in the garment industry in Jordan.

There are over 40 thousand Bangladeshi workers, mostly females, working in the garment industry of Jordan.

04. What is the number of Bangladeshis living in Jordan? How is the labour market situation in Jordan? Does the war in Gaza affect the export of Bangladesh workers to Jordan?

More than 50 thousand Bangladeshis are living in Jordan. Most of the Bangladeshi expatriates come to Jordan on a three-year-long employment contract. So, the number is dynamic.

Tourism plays an important role in Jordan's economy. Since the conflict in the occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza started, the arrival of international tourists in Jordan saw a negative growth.

Jordan’s only seaport in Aqaba is connected to the Red Sea through the Gulf of Aqaba. The occasional disruption in sealine communication has created logistical challenges for businesses in Jordan.

The economy of Jordan has proven its resilience despite all these challenges. The labour market situation and employment of Bangladeshi workers in Jordan also remain largely unaffected.

05. Foreign direct investment (FDI) flow to Bangladesh recorded at some 3.00 billion US dollars in 2023 fiscal year. Can Jordan entrepreneurs have interest in investing in Bangladesh? How do you evaluate the investment climate in Bangladesh?

Jordan is a resource-constrained country, unlike its neighboring countries. The economy of Jordan is largely dependent on the services sector (over 75 percent). Jordan herself longs for foreign investment. The Government of Jordan offers a lot of incentives for investment in its Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZs).

The limited interest we see among Jordanian investors to invest in Bangladesh is in the health and other services sector.

The investment climate in Bangladesh is very lucrative in terms of packages offered. However, we need more publicity and implementation of various policies already put in place.

06. Israeli troops have killed over 35,0000 Palestinians since October 2023.   How can Bangladesh and Jordan work together with OIC countries and put pressure on the international communities to stop killings in Gaza?

Bangladesh has maintained consistent policy in supporting unequivocally the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people in the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian State.

Bangladesh has always raised her voice at various multilateral forums and worked closely with like-minded countries in this regard. The notable recent initiative of Bangladesh is the referral of the situation in the State of Palestine to the International Criminal Court (ICC) along with Bolivia, Comoros, Djibouti, and South Africa. Bangladesh also backed South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh and the concerned Bangladesh Missions in New York, Geneva, and The Hague remain engaged in this regard.

07. When Bangladesh and Jordan held consultative talks at the Foreign Secretary (FS) level and what has been the progress of the last consultative talks?

The Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh Ambassador Masud Bin Momen and his Jordanian counterpart Ambassador Majid Al-Qatarna held a bilateral meeting in November 2023 in Amman. The whole gamut of bilateral relationship was discussed during the meeting. Both sides decided to sign several MOUs which are in near completion of internal formalities.

The Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh has already extended an invitation to his Jordanian counterpart to visit Bangladesh.