A group of diverse and inspirational Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs, representing eight businesses, will lead a trade mission to the United Kingdom this month.

The mission aims to foster cross-border trade and strengthen economic ties between Bangladesh and the UK.

During their visit, the entrepreneurs will engage in high-level discussions with investors, legislators, and corporate executives, while promoting trade under the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).

The DCTS offers Bangladesh duty-free, quota-free access to the UK market for all goods except arms. This preferential trading scheme presents an opportunity for Bangladesh to potentially save £317m annually in tariffs on exports to the UK, the highest savings among all countries eligible for the scheme.

British High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Sarah Cooke, hosted a send-off reception at her residence on Monday to congratulate the entrepreneurs before their departure to the UK.

This trade mission is part of an initiative by the International Trade Centre, which will bring 50 women-led businesses from Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Mongolia, and six African countries to Manchester for business-to-business (B2B) meetings with UK companies.

The event, taking place on February 11, will focus on connecting women-led businesses in sectors such as fresh and processed food, textiles, handicrafts, beauty, information technology, and business process outsourcing with British buyers seeking to diversify their supply chains and enhance product competitiveness.

The businesses selected from Bangladesh are TMSS ICT and Handicrafts, SuperTel, Opus Technology, Tarango Bangladesh, Parijat Bangladesh, TANIS Bangladesh, and Leatherina.

Five of these companies have already secured the necessary certifications for the UK market, while the remaining three are currently receiving support from the British Standard Institute (BSI) for accreditation.

The mission is hosted in partnership with the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce and funded by UK International Development as part of the SheTrades Commonwealth+ Programme.

The event is also supported by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, and the West and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce.

British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke said ‘The UK government is incredibly proud to support this remarkable group of Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs to develop new markets in the UK.’

Their inventiveness, tenacity and spirit of entrepreneurship serve as evidence of the enormous potential of Bangladeshi women-led enterprises, she added.

‘As Bangladesh and the UK continue to expand our bilateral trade through the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS), the UK will remain a steadfast partner. This trade mission will further solidify our trade and investment relationship,’ she noted.