Strategies which increase competitiveness of exports to be examined

Strategies that Commonwealth countries can adopt to help them produce and sell goods and services more efficiently will be examined at a workshop which will be held in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Estella Aryada, Trade Adviser at the Commonwealth Secretariat, said the workshop will provide a platform to exchange approaches, opportunities and challenges in developing and implementing strategies to enhance export competitiveness and also facilitate networking and sharing among participants.

“This workshop is expected to raise the awareness and understanding of competitiveness which will lead to a more robust articulation of competitiveness issues. This is an important precursor to developing and implementing strategies for enhanced competitiveness,” she stated.

The Secretariat’s Special Advisory Services Division is organising the event from 7 to 9 June 2008, which will be attended by participants from Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Maldives, Seychelles and Singapore,. Each country will be represented by two participants, from both the public and private sector.

Ms Aryada pointed out that some Asian countries in particular can provide important lessons to other Commonwealth countries, given the many strides states have made in small scale industrial development as well as cutting-edge technology.

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are two countries that have made such strides by developing an export industry for apparel, while India is also widely recognised as a world leader in exporting IT-enabled services.

Ms Aryada notes, however, that “the global trading environment is changing and it is therefore important to consider the necessary shifts towards securing other areas where global competitive advantage can be achieved.”

It is anticipated that small island states such as Maldives and Seychelles will bring valuable perspectives on competitiveness and their efforts to position themselves both at the regional and global arena during the workshop.