PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND THE IMPACT ON LDCs  TO PARTICIPATE OR NOT TO PARTICIPATE?

The document examines Bangladesh's cautious approach to plurilateral trade agreements (PTAs) against the backdrop of its planned graduation from LDC status by 2024. While the government remains neutral and prefers the inclusive multilateral system, the private sector sees PTAs as a way to build global alliances and prepare for the loss of LDC preferences. GTAP CGE modelling suggests that Bangladesh would benefit most from joining the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA), while gains from the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) and Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA) would be marginal, and the Information Technology Agreement II (ITA-II) would offer the least benefit.

• Bangladesh maintains a cautious and neutral stance toward plurilateral trade agreements, fearing they may be "better suited to developed than developing countries" and preferring the inclusive, rules-based multilateral approach of the WTO.
• There is a divergence in perspective between the Bangladeshi government and the private sector regarding the urgency of preparing for the country's graduation from LDC status by 2024. The private sector views the impending loss of preferences as "enormously challenging" and sees plurilaterals as an opportunity to build alliances and acquire technology, whereas government and academic stakeholders view the transition as a more distant event.
• The Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) is identified as the plurilateral offering the highest potential economic gain for Bangladesh. Modelling indicates an aggregate net welfare gain of $1,097.6 million if Bangladesh joins, compared to $75 million if it does not, with significant projected increases in investment.
• Participation in the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) and the Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA) would likely yield only marginal benefits. For TiSA, the net welfare gain from joining is estimated at $16.2 million versus $6.9 million for not joining; for EGA, the gain is $2,211.8 million versus $1,239.6 million for not joining.
• The Information Technology Agreement II (ITA-II) is projected to provide the least benefit of the four plurilaterals, with modelling showing an aggregate net welfare loss of -$2.9 million if Bangladesh joins and -$2.4 million if it does not.
• Bangladesh faces significant internal barriers to participating in plurilaterals, including capacity constraints within the government, a lack of experienced negotiators, and the risk that opening markets to foreign competition could harm domestic industries, such as the domestically focused IT sector.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2018). PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND THE IMPACT ON LDCs  TO PARTICIPATE OR NOT TO PARTICIPATE? https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/saia_spr_plurilaterals_Bangladesh-Case-Study_20180306.pdf

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND THE IMPACT ON LDCs  TO PARTICIPATE OR NOT TO PARTICIPATE? 2018. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/saia_spr_plurilaterals_Bangladesh-Case-Study_20180306.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND THE IMPACT ON LDCs  TO PARTICIPATE OR NOT TO PARTICIPATE? |date=February 2018 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/saia_spr_plurilaterals_Bangladesh-Case-Study_20180306.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2018plurilateral, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND THE IMPACT ON LDCs  TO PARTICIPATE OR NOT TO PARTICIPATE?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2018}, month = feb, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/saia_spr_plurilaterals_Bangladesh-Case-Study_20180306.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }