Football Mania: Stairway to trade buoyancy?

Even a month ago, the people of the World Cup 2022 winning nation, Argentina, did not know much about Bangladesh, a country that has had a die-hard Argentina fan base for long.

But during the World Cup, Bangladeshi fans grabbed global attention by displaying their immense passion when a video of ecstatic supporters cheering Messi’s goal against Mexico was posted by the official FIFA Twitter account.

Then the story became a component of bilateral relations, with the Argentine people talking about the Bangladesh fan base and their football team’s official social media platform expressing gratitude. After the World Cup win, the Argentine government announced they would reopen their embassy in Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, the Bangladesh embassy in Brazil said Argentina may open its embassy in Dhaka in 2023, UNB reported on Thursday. Bangladesh maintains an ambassador, Sadia Faizunnesa, to Argentina, and she is resident in Brazil.

According to the Bangladesh mission in Brazil, a letter signed by Argentine President Alberto Fernandez to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina – which was handed to Ambassador Sadia – said the brotherly ties between the two countries will be strengthened with the opening of an Argentine embassy in Dhaka in 2023.

The bilateral relations reached a new height after Sheikh Hasina congratulated the Argentine president, their football team, and the people after the World Cup win. The Argentine president responded with gratitude.     

Now businessmen in Bangladesh hope the tie can open up new windows of trade opportunity between the two countries as well, with the Argentine government echoing the sentiment.     

In a recent tweet, Santiago Cafiero, foreign minister of Argentina, expressed interest in tapping into the huge potential of the bilateral relation, mainly in the area of commerce,
to diversify trade and Argentina’s export offers.

Bangladeshi businessmen say this tie will increase Bangladesh’s image among the football playing nations as well. They say the governments of both countries and local exporters need to gradually explore opportunities and plan to make good use of the relations.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Faruque Hassan sees the new tie between the two countries’ people centring football as a branding opportunity for Bangladesh among the football playing nations.

“Currently, we do not have much trade relations with Argentina. But when diplomatic relations improve, it helps advance trade ties as well.”

He said other football nations witnessed how Bangladesh supported Argentina during the World Cup.

Bangladeshis spent huge money on purchasing jerseys and flags of Argentina, he said, adding this would not directly increase exports but work as a global branding tool for Bangladesh.

“Argentina does not import huge goods from us, and their import duty is high. Their population is not that big. However, the new relations will boost football diplomacy,” Faruque said.

He added Argentina could consider duty-free imports and exports in future. 

Currently, Bangladesh imports more from the Latin American country than it exports. It exported products worth $9.5 million and imported goods worth $791.5 million in FY22, according to government data.     

The products Bangladesh exports to Argentina include knitwear, sweater, jute, leather, plastic bag, and toy while it brings in cotton, fat, oil, and wheat. The FY22 export list was dominated by apparel goods amounting to $8.4 million.

Apparel makers think Argentina cannot be a major destination for their products as it has a small market. Rather, they want to focus on the entire Latin market where Argentina can be a reliable partner.   

BGMEA Director Md Khosru Chowdhury said exports to the Latin American countries like Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and Colombia have increased over time but the volume is not remarkable yet.

“As Argentina does not have its embassy here, businessmen need to get a visa from India, which is not an easy process. If they open their embassy here, that will make travel easy and business smooth as well,” he said.

He said exports to the Latin countries are not gaining pace as the duty is high – almost 30 per cent. “We have tried to negotiate with Brazil to minimise it. If they agree, we believe their neighbours, including Argentina, will follow suit.”

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam at a programme on Wednesday said the Argentine president wants to have a meeting with Sheikh Hasina very soon and wants to deepen the relationship between the two countries.

In another programme on Thursday, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said Messi would be invited to Bangladesh along with the Argentine foreign minister, who is slated to come here in March next year.

During the World Cup, the Argentine foreign minister in a tweet said his country’s exports to Bangladesh totalled $876 million in 2021, an all-time high.

“The main products exported to Bangladesh are soybean oil and its pellet, flour, corn, and wheat. These account for 99 per cent of the shipments,” he added.

The Argentine foreign ministry also issued a statement in this regard, according to MercoPress.

“With the reopening of the embassy and its consular section, we seek to exploit the potential of the bilateral relation, mainly in the commercial aspect which has a wide potential for growth, seeking to diversify trade. Likewise, we want to promote cooperation in sports, satellite, humanitarian aid, and disaster management,” MercoPress reported quoting the statement.

Santiago plans to make a trip to Bangladesh to finalise the details about reopening the embassy after participating in the G-20 Foreign Ministers’ Summit in India in 2023, MercoPress quoted the Argentine foreign minister as saying.