The International Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh (ICCB) has said the country is prepared to enter a new economic age as it prepares to exit the UN’s Least Developed Country (LDC) classification in November 2026.
The ICCB observed that Bangladesh had fulfilled the three UN graduation requirements, which are the Economic Vulnerability Index, Human Assets Index and Gross National Income per capita.
However, graduation will signal the start of a more difficult economic age, the ICCB warned. Bangladesh will begin to lose duty-free and quota-free trade benefits in important export markets like the European Union, Canada and Australia as soon as the transition takes place.
New tariffs of 10–12% might reduce competitiveness for the readymade garment (RMG) sector, which generates more than 80% of export revenue, unless productivity and value addition increase.
The ICCB stressed that the post-LDC future will necessitate drastic changes and structural change in order to maintain growth and global competitiveness.
Bangladesh has been dealing with high inflation, broken supply chains and dwindling investor confidence since the political upheaval in July 2024. While external debt, which is already over US $ 100 billion, continues to put pressure on fiscal stability, export-oriented industries like textiles and logistics experience losses and shipment delays.
The ICCB also cautioned that Bangladesh must redefine itself as a hub for sustainable and creative manufacturing in response to new global issues including carbon border taxes, more stringent due diligence regulations and rising protectionism.
Additionally, the country will have to rely on more costly commercial borrowing after graduation since it would no longer be eligible for grants and concessional loans. The ICCB advised Bangladesh to take advantage of this opportunity to expand its economy beyond clothing into industries with the potential for long-term growth and competitiveness, including pharmaceuticals, information technology, leather, shipbuilding and agro-processing.
The ICCB and 15 significant trade organisations have jointly suggested delaying the LDC graduation by three to five years in order to lessen short-term impacts. They contended that the extension would allow industries to regain capacity, improve their competitiveness and deal with the unpredictability of the global economy.