In a major relief for importers battling mounting port costs, the government has directed the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) to keep its key operations active even on weekends and maintain round-the-clock vigilance to ensure faster clearance of imported goods and shield traders from costly demurrage charges.
The directive came from Industries Secretary Md Obaidur Rahman at a high-level stakeholder public hearing held at the BSTI headquarters in Tejgaon on Saturday, where business leaders pressed for urgent reforms to end prolonged delays in product testing, certification and release at ports.
Responding to what he described as a long-standing and legitimate demand from the trading community, the Industries Secretary ordered BSTI officials to remain fully operational beyond conventional working days so that imported consignments do not remain stranded awaiting laboratory reports or mandatory clearance certificates.
The move is expected to significantly cut the time importers spend at Chattogram and other ports, where delays in regulatory certification often trigger substantial demurrage �" compensation paid for extended container storage and vessel detention �" adding to already elevated import costs.
Md Obaidur Rahman also instructed BSTI to issue clearance certificates in a shorter time than that stipulated under its Citizen Charter, making it clear that procedural sluggishness would no longer be tolerated when it directly affects trade competitiveness.
“The government does not conduct business itself; its responsibility is to create the policy support and service environment necessary for entrepreneurs to operate smoothly,” he said. “To sustain the country’s development momentum, the government will stand beside traders in resolving every practical bottleneck.”
The public hearing, chaired by BSTI Director General (Additional Duty) M A Kamal Billah, brought together senior officials of the standards watchdog and representatives from some of the country’s largest industrial groups, including PRAN-RFL Group, Square Toiletries, City Group, Walton, ACI, Olympic Bakery and Confectionery and several other food, consumer goods and manufacturing enterprises.
Participants raised a wide range of concerns over certification delays, standard-setting complications, counterfeit goods in the market and regulatory inconsistencies that they said were undermining industrial efficiency and increasing compliance costs.
Following extensive discussions, several important policy decisions were taken.
Among the most significant was the decision to identify the manufacturing sources of illegal and counterfeit products operating under fake certification claims and to launch stricter enforcement action against such entities.
BSTI also agreed to move towards shortening the time required for issuing Statutory Regulatory Orders (SROs) related to formulation or revision of product standards �" a process that industrialists say often takes too long and delays the introduction of new products to market.
Stakeholders also discussed the harmonisation of standards between sugar and non-sugar bread and bakery products, a move expected to remove ambiguities that currently complicate approval procedures for bakery and confectionery producers.
At the same time, BSTI signalled stronger surveillance and regulatory drives in live bakery operations to ensure food safety compliance and product quality in one of the country’s fastest-growing processed food segments.
BSTI Director General M A Kamal Billah described traders and industrialists as the principal engine of the national economy and acknowledged that the standards authority must become more service-oriented if it is to support industrial expansion.
