Dhaka, May 6 -- As Bangladesh is entering one of the most consequential economic transitions in its post-independence history, a major new policy study warns that the country's trade policy apparatus is not yet equipped to handle what lies ahead.

The paper titled "Strengthening Trade Competitiveness: Bangladesh's Strategy for Effective FTAs and EPAs", authored by Prof Selim Raihan of Dhaka University and Executive Director of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM), was published recently under a joint SANEM and Australian High Commission policy paper series.

Using the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) general equilibrium model, it simulates 10 distinct trade scenarios to measure the actual impact on Bangladesh's welfare...