Liberalisation and Growth in Bangladesh An Empirical Investigation

Economic liberalization entails either trade liberalization or financial and capital account liberalisation or both. Starting from the mid-1980s, Bangladesh gradually introduced various liberalisation measures. The process was initiated by liberalising its international trade, which consisted permitting the exporters of non- traditional items to convert some of their export earnings at higher exchange rate in the secondary market, reduction of the tariff level and tariff dispersion, simplification and rationalisation of the tariff structure, and deregulation of the import process as well as export incentives such as Export Performance Licensing, Export Performance Benefit Scheme, Special Bonded Warehouse Scheme, Back- to-Back L/C System, Export Credit Guarantee Scheme, Export Promotion Fund, bank loans, and “tax holiday.”