The Roundtable Meeting between Bangladesh and Chinese Business Leaders was held in Beijing on July 4. Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, and Gao Yan, Chairperson of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), attended and addressed the meeting.

Hasina said that Bangladesh-China economic and trade cooperation has a long history. In recent years, the two countries enjoy increasingly deepened bilateral relations and frequent high-level exchanges. During President Xi Jinping's state visit to Bangladesh in 2016, the two sides signed 27 cooperation agreements and memorandums of understanding, laying the foundation for the further development of China-Bangladesh economic and trade relations.

Hasina added that Bangladesh enjoys rapid economic growth and great potential for development.

“In the future, the Bangladeshi government will continue to push forward the industrialization process, build 100 special economic zones and set up special economic zones for Chinese enterprises. We hope that Chinese enterprises will seize the opportunity to increase imports from Bangladesh, actively invest in textile, leather processing, agricultural product processing and other industries, and explore new opportunities for China-Bangladesh cooperation,” said Hasina.

Gao Yan said, Bangladesh is an important country along the Belt and Road route. “In recent years China and Bangladesh have actively implemented the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries during President Xi Jinping's visit to Bangladesh in 2016, and made steady progress in carrying out the Belt and Road cooperation projects, bringing tangible benefits to the two peoples. At the G20 Osaka Summit, President Xi Jinping said that China will open its market still wider, take greater initiatives to expand imports, continuously improve the business environment, treat all foreign investment equally and make greater efforts to advance trade talks. CCPIT is willing to work with the Bangladeshi business community to seize the opportunity to hold more events and build more platforms for and achieve more practical results in promoting bilateral economic, trade and investment cooperation,” added Gao.

During the meeting, Fang Qiuchen, President of China International Contractors Association, Zhou Yong, Deputy General Manager of China State Construction Group Co., Ltd., Zeng Chenggang, Executive Vice President of Huawei, Sheikh Fazle Fahim, President of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce & Industry, introduced the status of and further plans for their cooperation, and expressed their strong desire to strengthen cooperation and achieve matchmaking.

The meeting, hosted by CCPIT and the Embassy of Bangladesh in China and organized by China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC) and China International Contractors Association, gathered about 150 government officials and business delegates from the two countries.