About 92% of Bangladeshi products, including ready-made garments, will keep duty-free access to the British market after a three-year transition that follows the country’s graduation from the least developed country (LDC) category, Britain’s top envoy in Dhaka said on Sunday.
British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke made the remarks on the second day of the Bay of Bengal Conversation 2026, a three-day conference organised by the Centre for Governance Studies. Read Here
Bangladesh currently enjoys duty-free access on 99.8% of its product lines in the UK market, Cooke said. Those benefits will continue for three years after LDC graduation, after which duty-free treatment will remain available for 92% of products, garments among them.
Cooke said Britain’s priority is to help Dhaka achieve a smooth and sustainable transition from LDC status, and described the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme as one of the world’s simplest and most generous trade preference arrangements.
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She called Bangladesh a strategic and trusted partner, with relations evolving into a more modern strategic partnership. Britain is one of Bangladesh’s largest investors, she said, with British companies in finance, fashion, education and energy generating significant employment.
On security, Cooke pointed to a shared interest in a free and open Indo-Pacific and recognised Bangladesh’s growing responsibilities in the Bay of Bengal. Both countries see a need for coordinated responses to economic security challenges, cyber threats and climate-related risks, she added.
On the Rohingya crisis, she reaffirmed Britain’s commitment to keeping international attention on the issue and working toward the voluntary, safe and dignified return of refugees to Myanmar when conditions allow, calling repatriation the only sustainable solution.
Cooke said few countries understand climate risks better than Bangladesh, where rising sea levels and extreme weather are already affecting communities. These impacts will continue across generations, she added.