CNI News

16 October 2023

Some commodities have been restricted at the Rakhine-Bangladesh border trade relating to export and as they must be traded at the Sittwe border only, there is hardly any trade now, said traders in Maungdaw. 

Aqua products - various kinds of fish from fresh and saltwater and agricultural products - rice, broken rice, various pea and bean, sesame, onion and so on must be trades at the Sittwe border trade only starting from 4th September, the government restricted. Traders in Maungdaw don't export a lot of other products and the situation must be watched in the coming open season, said U San Thein, vice chairman of the Maungdaw border trade association, to CNI News.

" Because the restriction has been conducted, traders have to export the goods from the convenient places. There are no restricted products here in Maungdaw and they haven't been able to export other products. It is drawing near thee open season. We have to go on trading based on open season." he said.

While loading bags of onions onto a truck at the Sittwe border trade camp

So, there is hardly any trade at the Maungdaw border trade and the trade is almost stopping, said traders.

Because the goods ordered from Bangladesh must be exported from the Sittwe border trade, traders in Maungdaw are finding it difficult. 

Some traders whose license period have not expired could export.

As Rakhine-Bangladesh trade depends on the orders from Bangladesh, at present, exporting goods from the Sittwe border trade is just in the normal position, said U Tin Aung Oo, Rakhine State Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, to CNI News.

Cargo workers at the Maungdaw border trade camp

" At present, we can regularly export, but it depend on the orders from Bangladesh.  The export has not increased a lot. When the open season comes in the end of this month, we will export more, I think." he said.

Although it was not difficult to export other products from the Sittwe border trade, when the aqua products were exported through Sittwe, because it took long to cross the sea, the quality of aqua products declined and the price also declined, said traders.

So, traders and fish entrepreneurs are requesting to allow then to export through both Maungdaw and Sittwe border trade camps.

The export value from the two border trade camps was 8.77 million US dollars from April to September in the 2023-24 fiscal year. 

Goods were exported for 1.42 million US dollars from Maungdaw and import value was 0.004 million US dollars. And Sittwe exported goods for 0.518 million US dollars, according to the Rakhine State Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry.