Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Saida Shinichi has expected that an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) will be signed soon to expand bilateral trade and investment between Bangladesh and Japan.

The ambassador made the remarks during a bilateral meeting with the President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), Taskeen Ahmed, at the DCCI office in Gulshan on Tuesday.

He said, “Seventh meeting between Bangladesh and Japan on the EPA was recently held in Tokyo. The agreement would be signed soon after the necessary dialogue is completed, which would bring new momentum to the economic relationship between the two countries.”

During the meeting, the DCCI President acknowledged Japan's undeniable contribution to Bangladesh's infrastructural development and overall economic progress.

He stated that according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), the bilateral trade volume between Bangladesh and Japan stood at US$3.12 billion in fiscal year 2023-24. Of this, imports were $1.81 billion, and exports were $1.31 billion. Currently, Japan is the 12th largest export market for Bangladeshi products.

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Taskeen noted that Japanese investment in various sectors, including construction, textiles, fertilizers, power, gas, and petroleum, has already reached $507 million.

However, with Japan's total foreign investment amounting to $184 billion, there is significant room for Bangladesh to attract more investment, said DCCI President.

He emphasized the importance of Japanese technology and technical assistance in sectors such as automobiles, machinery, agro-processing, information technology, infrastructure, logistics, and human resource development.

He also sought cooperation to expand export markets by enhancing the capacity of the SME sector.

Ambassador Saida Shinichi stated that Bangladesh has immense potential for business and investment.

However, to harness this potential, it is crucial to diversify the industrial sector and ensure efficiency and accountability in government services. Bangladesh's domestic market is expanding, which makes it attractive to Japanese investors, he added.

The ambassador also said that there are employment opportunities in Japan for Bangladesh's skilled workforce in the IT sector.

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DCCI Senior Vice President Rajib H. Chowdhury, Vice President Md. Salim Solaiman, and officials from the Japanese Embassy were also present at the meeting.