Bangladeshi chamber leaders and traders said that they are not enthusiastic about enforcement of the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) because of the existence of various non-tariff barriers, The Financial Express reported Sunday.

The SAFTA is expected to start its operation on July 1, as seven participating members -- Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and the Maldives -- pledged to implement free trade area agreement to accelerate economic development.

The agreement on the SAFTA was signed in Islamabad during the 12th SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) summit in January 2004, and all the member states have since completed all the formalities including its ratification.

Mir Nasir Hossain, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) said the outcome would not be visible immediately and it will take time to reap the benefits of the SAFTA.

"We must resolve issues on non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and develop infrastructures to raise the volume of bilateral trade," Nasir was quoted by local media as saying.

Latifur Rahman, President of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the SAFTA still remains a mere paper agreement. He did not see any forward movement on the trade front, in the process of the SAFTA implementation.

Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and the Maldives will have to maintain the customs duty from 0.0 to 5.0 per cent within the next 10 years while India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will have to do the same within seven years.

The first round of customs duty reduction will take place in July-August 2006 as agreed by the member states.

Source: Xinhua