Businesses request Yunus for LDC deferment to 2032

Leaders of the country's top 16 business chambers and trade bodies requested Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus to defer the LDC graduation for six more years considering the current situation of the economy.

At present, there are some risks of graduation such as EU, UK and key export destinations may impose tariffs up to 12 percent, risking a 6-14 percent drop in exports unless Bangladesh secures trade deals, said the joint letter sent to Yunus on August 24.

The special benefits for least-developed countries such as export subsidies and relaxed TRIPS rules will end.

Withdrawal of the relaxed TRIPS rules will expose the pharmaceutical industry to full patent enforcement once the country graduates in November 2026.

Without at least six more years to prepare, blockbuster medicines such as those for cancer and viral infections could skyrocket in cost, undermining public health and export competitiveness.

For example, osimertinib (lung cancer) now costs around $3-5 per tablet from Bangladeshi generics, but the global brand price is $200-600 per tablet (equivalent to $6,000-18,000 per month).

HIV antiretrovirals that patients here can access for $100-150 per year may cost $10,000-12,000 per year in high-income markets.

Similarly, biologic drugs such as trastuzumab (breast cancer) are available locally for about $200-400 per vial, whereas international prices are often $3,000 4,000 per dose, the letter said.

The graduation will be particularly impactful for the apparel sector, which accounts for over 81 percent of the export value.

Duty-free access will end, production costs will rise and compliance rules will tighten.

Electricity and gas constraints pose a major challenge for Bangladesh in its post-LDC graduation journey.

Frequent power cuts, gas shortages and rising energy costs disrupt industrial production, raise export prices and reduce competitiveness.

Several countries such as the Maldives, Vanuatu, Samoa and Nepal have delayed their UN-designated LDC graduation despite meeting the eligibility criteria, usually due to economic or political challenges, said the joint letter sent to Yunus on August 24.

The Solomon Islands were granted a six-year delay.

Myanmar met the UN graduation criteria in years such as 2018, 2021 and 2024.

However, due to political instability following a military coup, the UN Committee for Development Policy (CDP) deferred its graduation until 2027.

Timor-Leste also fulfilled the criteria in 2015, 2018 and 2021. Yet, the CDP postponed its graduation decision until 2024.

The chambers and trade bodies are the International Chamber of Commerce-Bangladesh, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The other chambers and trade bodies are the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Bangladesh Chamber of Industries, the Bangladesh Association of Banks, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association.

The Bangladesh Textile Mills Association, the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries, the Bangladesh Association of Publicly Listed Companies, the Bangladesh Insurance Association, the Bangladesh Semiconductor Industry Association and the Leather and Footwear Manufacturers & Exporters Association of Bangladesh also signed the joint letter.