Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s first overseas tour, covering Malaysia and China, carried significance beyond ceremonial diplomacy. The China leg brought high-level meetings, investment discussions and cooperation instruments, placing trade, infrastructure, river management and regional connectivity at the centre of the conversation.
In my view, the visit should be understood as an attempt to widen Bangladesh’s economic options while preserving an independent and balanced foreign policy.
The more important test is whether Bangladesh can convert political goodwill into projects, investment, technology transfer and greater market access. The direction is encouraging, but implementation must now become the priority.
A post-LDC economic partnership
China has long been one of Bangladesh’s most important commercial partners and a major source of imported machinery, industrial materials and consumer goods. As Bangladesh prepares for the adjustments following graduation from least developed country status, the relationship needs to move beyond a largely import-driven structure.
The Chinese market offers substantial potential for Bangladeshi exports, but access alone will not be enough. Bangladesh must identify products with demand, improve standards and logistics, and remove practical barriers. Leather goods, pharmaceuticals, agro-products, aquatic products and jute-based goods can benefit from a focused strategy.
The goal should be to reduce the trade imbalance not by restricting necessary imports, but by expanding Bangladesh’s productive and export capacity. China’s consumer market, manufacturing networks and supply chains can support that transition if Bangladesh approaches the relationship with a clear plan.
During the visit, Dhaka specifically sought greater Chinese imports of Bangladeshi products and support for modernizing domestic industries.
The proposed Chinese economic and industrial zone is therefore important. Earlier efforts lost momentum, but reviving the initiative through a workable structure could attract manufacturers seeking new production locations.
Bangladesh should resolve land, infrastructure, customs, energy and regulatory issues. Investors respond to credible preparation, not declarations.
Infrastructure and industrial transformation
Chinese cooperation is already associated with major infrastructure in Bangladesh. The next phase should connect it with industrialization. Roads, ports, railways and power facilities create lasting value when they reduce costs, generate employment and support exports.
Bangladesh should benefit from the relocation and diversification of Chinese manufacturing. Changing costs and supply-chain strategies are encouraging Chinese firms to invest abroad.
Bangladesh has a large workforce, access to the Bay of Bengal and proximity to major Asian markets. These advantages can make the country a competitive production base, provided the investment environment is transparent and predictable.
Priority areas should include renewable energy, electric mobility, electronics, automated production, machinery, modern textiles and other technology-intensive industries. Cooperation should include skills development, local sourcing and technology transfer rather than remain limited to imported equipment and construction contracts.
China’s advances in green technology also match Bangladesh’s needs. Solar power, energy storage, efficient grids and electric transport could support growth while reducing pressure on imported fuel.
Chinese and Bangladeshi officials have already identified artificial intelligence, green development, healthcare and education as possible areas of expanded cooperation.
Water cooperation as a national priority
The discussion on water management may prove to be one of the most consequential aspects of the relationship. Bangladesh is a downstream deltaic country, and water is inseparable from food security, agriculture, livelihoods, climate resilience and national survival.
Our public debate often focuses narrowly on water allocation from individual rivers. That concern is legitimate, but Bangladesh also requires integrated governance covering river restoration, floods, erosion, irrigation, drainage, sediment and basin planning.
China has significant technical experience in large-scale water management and engineering. Bangladesh can benefit from that knowledge, including in relation to the Teesta, but cooperation should be based on careful feasibility studies, environmental safeguards and transparent financing. Every project must be assessed according to Bangladesh’s long-term needs.
The Teesta and wider water-management agenda featured prominently in the bilateral discussions, with China indicating its willingness to support river-management and restoration initiatives.
Rivers, however, do not follow political borders. Many of Bangladesh’s major waterways are linked to India and the wider Himalayan system involving Nepal, Bhutan and China. Bilateral cooperation with Beijing should therefore complement regional engagement. The strongest outcome would be a coordinated framework in which data, expertise and planning are shared among relevant countries.
Connectivity without exclusion
Bangladesh’s location gives it the potential to serve as a bridge between South Asia, Southeast Asia and China. This is one of the country’s greatest strategic assets, yet it remains underused.
The proposed China–Myanmar–Bangladesh Economic Corridor deserves serious consideration. It could improve market access, port connectivity and industrial investment.
Bangladesh should join initiatives that offer clear returns and protect national security and financial sustainability. China expressed support during the visit for advancing the proposed corridor, alongside cooperation in ports and other connectivity projects.
This should not be viewed as a choice between China and India. Bangladesh also has strong reasons to expand connectivity with India, Nepal and Bhutan. Transit, energy trade, road and railway links, and access to ports can produce shared gains. A modern version of the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar framework could also be explored if political conditions permit.
The guiding principle should be openness without exclusivity. Bangladesh gains most when multiple corridors intersect within its territory and when no single relationship prevents cooperation with another partner. Connectivity should create commerce and stability, not geopolitical divisions.
Sovereign diplomacy in a competitive world
The prime minister of an independent country must be free to visit any partner and pursue any relationship that advances national interests. Bangladesh should neither seek permission from external powers nor allow its foreign policy to be interpreted solely through rivalry between larger states.
China has strategic interests in the Bay of Bengal and in expanding the Belt and Road Initiative. Bangladesh also has its own interests: investment, industrial growth, infrastructure, market access, water security and diplomatic support. Cooperation is sustainable when both sides recognize this mutuality.
The Rohingya crisis is an area where deeper engagement with China may be useful. Beijing’s influence in Myanmar gives it a potentially important role in supporting conditions for safe, voluntary and sustainable repatriation.
Bangladesh should keep the issue prominent while working with the United Nations, regional countries and other international partners.
The wider geopolitical environment requires prudence. The United States remains central to Bangladesh’s export economy, China is indispensable to trade and investment, and India is a neighboring power with deep commercial, geographic and security links. None can be neglected.
Balance must therefore be active, not rhetorical. Bangladesh should cooperate with each partner in areas of shared interest while avoiding arrangements that unnecessarily close off other options. This is strategic autonomy.
Turning diplomatic momentum into results
The visit has created a positive foundation, but expectations must be realistic. Memorandums and political commitments are only the beginning. Chinese investment will depend on project quality, regulatory clarity, contract enforcement, reliable energy, efficient ports and confidence in governance.
Bangladesh should establish a high-level mechanism to monitor the agreements reached during the tour. Each project should have a timeline, responsible agency, financing structure and public-interest assessment. Communication should become more direct and practical so that bureaucratic delays do not weaken momentum.
Transparency is equally important. Large infrastructure and strategic projects should be evaluated for cost, debt exposure, environmental impact and local economic benefit. Such scrutiny is not opposed to cooperation; it is what makes cooperation durable.
I see the China visit as an opportunity for Bangladesh to pursue a more confident economic and diplomatic strategy. It can support export diversification after LDC graduation, revive industrial-zone plans, attract manufacturing, advance green technology, improve water management and strengthen regional connectivity.
The opportunity will be fully realized only through disciplined implementation and balanced diplomacy. Bangladesh must remain friendly with major powers without becoming dependent on any one of them.
It should welcome investment while protecting financial sustainability, pursue connectivity while preserving sovereignty, and seek strategic cooperation without entering zero-sum rivalries.
National interest must remain at the centre of every decision. Properly managed, the understandings reached during the prime minister’s tour can become more than a diplomatic success.
They can help Bangladesh build jobs, technology, resilience and a stronger position in the changing Asian economic order.
About Author:
Anonno Afroz is a writer and analyst at The Business Standard.