Bangladesh Hopeful Of Signing Free Trade Agreement With Malaysia By December 2027

Kuala Lumpur/Dhaka, September 23, 2026 — Bangladesh High Commissioner to Malaysia Manjurul Karim Khan Chowdhury on Wednesday expressed hope that a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Bangladesh and Malaysia would be signed by December 2027. Referring to discussions held between the Prime Ministers of Bangladesh and Malaysia during the recent visit of the Bangladesh Prime Minister to Malaysia, he also expressed optimism that such an agreement would play a positive role in further expanding bilateral trade, business and investment.

🤝 The High Commissioner's remarks came at a business discussion titled “Bangladesh Business Forum: Connecting Businesses, Forging Partnerships and Expanding Opportunities”, organised by the Klang Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) at the KCCCI auditorium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The event was attended by a 39-member business delegation led by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) President Taskeen Ahmed.

🏛 Event Participants

The business discussion brought together:

• 👥 DCCI business delegation — 39 members, led by DCCI President Taskeen Ahmed.
• 👥 Klang Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCCI) — led by President Jeffery Tan.
• 👥 Teng Chang Khim, Chairman of SME Corp. Malaysia, attended as the special guest.
• 👥 Bangladesh High Commissioner to Malaysia Manjurul Karim Khan Chowdhury.

💼 Klang As A Strategic Investment Hub

In his welcome remarks, President of the Klang Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry Jeffery Tan said that one of Malaysia's largest seaports is located in Klang. He added that, given the availability of modern logistics facilities essential for business and trade, Bangladeshi entrepreneurs may consider investment opportunities in Malaysia, particularly in Klang.

Tan noted that Malaysia is currently shifting its focus from labour-intensive industries towards technology-driven industries. He said Malaysian entrepreneurs could consider investing in Bangladesh's ICT sector if the necessary facilities and a conducive investment environment are ensured.

🏛 DCCI President's Pitch For Bangladesh Investment

Dhaka Chamber President Taskeen Ahmed, expressing gratitude to the Klang Chamber for inviting the DCCI business delegation, said Bangladesh and Malaysia have long-standing friendly economic relations. However, the private sectors of both countries need to work together to further expand bilateral trade.

He noted that Bangladesh is the world's second-largest exporter of ready-made garments, while the country's services and other manufacturing-oriented sectors also offer significant potential for foreign investors.

💼 Sectors For Malaysian Investment In Bangladesh

Ahmed said Bangladesh offers promising investment opportunities for Malaysian entrepreneurs in sectors including:

• 🔌 Energy infrastructure
• 📱 Digital financial services
• 📱 Telecommunications
• 🔹 Semiconductors
• 🧀 Halal food products
• 💚 Healthcare
• 🏖 Tourism
• 🎓 Human resource skills development

Ahmed also called for Malaysia's cooperation in increasing the export of Bangladeshi products to other countries in the ASEAN region — a request that aligns with Bangladesh's broader strategic interest in accessing the ASEAN market of over 650 million consumers.

💚 Healthcare And Tourism Sectors

Taskeen Ahmed noted that Bangladeshis spend approximately USD 4-6 billion annually abroad for medical treatment. Considering this, Malaysian healthcare-sector entrepreneurs could make an important contribution to Bangladesh's healthcare sector by establishing world-class hospitals and healthcare facilities in the country.

He also sought Malaysia's cooperation in:

• 🏖 Developing a world-class tourism industry in Bangladesh.
• 🧀 Promoting the overall growth of the halal industry in Bangladesh.

🌏 High Commissioner: Investment Destination, Not Just Manpower Source

High Commissioner Chowdhury said Bangladesh is not only a major source of manpower but also a promising investment destination. He noted that Bangladesh offers abundant investment opportunities across various potential sectors, which Malaysian entrepreneurs can explore.

The envoy said that one of the major impediments to expanding trade and business between Bangladesh and Malaysia is the absence of a bilateral trade agreement between the two countries — a pointed reference to the importance of the proposed FTA.

He also invited Malaysian entrepreneurs to invest in Bangladesh's promising sectors, including:

• ✈ Aviation
• 💚 Medical services
• 💻 ICT
• 🌾 Agro-processing

🧀 Halal Industry Cooperation

The envoy said that Bangladesh has a large market for Malaysian halal products and sought Malaysia's cooperation in establishing an effective halal ecosystem in Bangladesh by leveraging Malaysia's long-standing expertise and experience in this sector.

This is significant because Malaysia is a global leader in halal certification, halal food production and halal pharmaceuticals. Bangladesh has a Muslim-majority population of approximately 170 million and a domestic halal market estimated at over $10 billion — but the country has not yet developed an integrated halal certification and industry ecosystem comparable to Malaysia's.

🔹 Semiconductor Sector Cooperation

He noted that Malaysian entrepreneurs could play an important role in developing skilled human resources in Bangladesh's semiconductor sector through training and capacity-building initiatives. This aligns with Bangladesh's emerging ambition to develop a domestic semiconductor industry — an ambition that has been reinforced by global semiconductor supply chain reshuffling and Bangladesh's LDC graduation trajectory.

🏢 SME Corp Malaysia Chairman's Remarks

Chairman of SME Corporation Malaysia Tan Ching Khim said that Malaysia currently has 1.3 million SMEs. He urged both the Dhaka Chamber and the Klang Chamber to work together to:

• 👥 Enhance interaction between small and medium-sized entrepreneurs of Bangladesh and Malaysia.
• 👥 Strengthen business cooperation.
• 👥 Expand business opportunities.

He said that Bangladeshi workers constitute the largest group among foreign workers employed in Malaysia and have been making an important contribution to the Malaysian economy, particularly to the development of Malaysia's infrastructure sector, through their skilled participation in various economic activities.

He also noted that the people of Malaysia have a positive attitude towards expatriates from Bangladesh. He expressed hope that this positive relationship would contribute further to the expansion of trade, business and investment between the two countries.

📊 Bangladesh-Malaysia Trade Snapshot

Bangladesh-Malaysia bilateral trade has historically been heavily skewed in Malaysia's favour, with Bangladesh primarily importing palm oil, machinery, chemicals and refined petroleum products from Malaysia, while exporting mainly RMG and agricultural products to Malaysia.

• 💰 Bangladesh's imports from Malaysia (FY26): approximately US$2.5-3.0 billion.
• 💰 Bangladesh's exports to Malaysia (FY26): approximately US$200-250 million.
• 💰 Trade gap: significantly in Malaysia's favour.

The proposed FTA is expected to address this asymmetry by providing preferential market access for Bangladeshi exports — particularly RMG, pharmaceuticals, jute products, leather goods and ICT services — while also facilitating Malaysian investment in Bangladesh's growth sectors.

🏛 Strategic Implications For Bangladesh

A Bangladesh-Malaysia FTA would be strategically significant for several reasons:

• 🌏 ASEAN gateway — Malaysia is an ASEAN member, and a bilateral FTA could serve as a stepping stone for Bangladesh's broader ASEAN economic engagement.
• 🌏 Halal market access — Malaysia's halal certification is globally recognised, and an FTA could open global halal markets for Bangladeshi products.
• 🌏 LDC graduation preparation — as Bangladesh prepares to graduate from LDC status in 2026, securing bilateral FTAs is becoming a strategic priority to compensate for the loss of preferential market access.
• 🌏 Investment inflows — Malaysian investment could help bridge Bangladesh's investment gap in infrastructure, healthcare and ICT.
• 🌏 Labour migration framework — the FTA could include provisions on labour mobility, formalising the significant Bangladeshi workforce in Malaysia.

The December 2027 target for signing the FTA provides approximately 15 months for negotiations — a relatively tight but feasible timeline if both governments commit to accelerating the technical discussions.

The DCCI's proactive engagement with the Klang Chinese Chamber of Commerce signals the Bangladeshi private sector's commitment to building the commercial relationships that will underpin the FTA once it is signed.