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The National Logistics Policy 2025 (NLP-2025) is the first operative logistics framework issued by Bangladesh's Yunus interim government (formed August 2024 following the political changeover that ended Sheikh Hasina's Awami League administration). The interim government annulled the prior National Logistic Policy-2024 (Awami League cabinet, 8 April 2024) and this replaces it.
Governance architecture: Two-tier: 1. National Logistics Council — chaired by the Chief Adviser (Prof. Muhammad Yunus), provides top-level strategic direction and inter-ministerial coordination guidelines. 2. National Logistics Development and Coordination Committee — led by the Principal Secretary to the Chief Adviser, responsible for implementation review, monitoring, and cross-agency coordination.
Seven appendices cover: sectoral definitions, related-policy lists, reformation proposals, institutional capacity assessment, skill-demand assessment, investment opportunities, and research-based recommendations.
Modal priorities: The policy explicitly prioritises rail and inland-waterway transport as the logistics backbone — Bangladesh has over 3,000 km of navigable waterways and rail routes currently underutilised relative to road-haulage. This reflects the broader global logistics efficiency direction (emissions, congestion, cost per tonne-km).
Infrastructure programme: implementation activities target multimodal logistics hubs, economic zones, international economic corridors, airports, river ports, sea ports, and land ports — with Chittagong (main sea port), Benapole (main land port), and the proposed Payra deep-sea port as anchors.
Post-LDC graduation context: Bangladesh graduates from LDC status on 24 November 2026, losing EU Everything-But-Arms (EBA) duty-free access. Reducing logistics costs — currently among the highest in South Asia as a share of GDP — is a core competitiveness lever for the post-graduation environment, where 10%+ MFN tariffs on EU exports would otherwise erode margin in apparel, pharmaceuticals, and jute.
Bangladesh's ~$40bn+ RMG export sector (H&M, Inditex, Primark, Gap supply chains) competing against Vietnam and Cambodia for EU/UK buyer order books in the post-LDC duty-gap environment.
invites private investment in multimodal logistics infrastructure. BEZA (Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority) and BEPZA (Export Processing Zones Authority) notifications under the Policy will define specific investable zones.
component intersects with Bangladesh–India bilateral transit-trade agreements and the India-Bangladesh rail link upgrades. The 2025 suspension of India–Bangladesh bilateral trade routes (filed as 2025-05-17-india-dgft-bangladesh-port-restrictions) underscores the strategic stakes of logistics redundancy.
Japanese ODA (JICA) are both active in Bangladesh port and corridor infrastructure; the NLP-2025 governance structure provides a formal counterpart for bilateral logistics-investment MOUs.
compulsory-licensing exemptions until November 2026; the NLP-2025 cold-chain and airport-logistics provisions are designed to support pharmaceutical export growth before that window closes.
to the NLP-2025 approval? The Bangladesh Government Press (bgpress.gov.bd) extraordinary-gazette portal should carry the Council of Advisers decision notification — not yet located as of filing date.
LDC graduation (November 2026)? Implementation timeline has not been published.
and-flood-management infrastructure commitments, which are a major constraint on inland-port development?
Awami League version was led by the Ministry of Commerce; the 2025 version appears anchored at Cabinet Division level — which affects downstream SRO authority chains.