For an emerging economy like that of Bangladesh, exporting manufactured goods to the world and importing a range of commodities from the assorted origins are an essentially vital trade. With the expansion of open-market demands the freight and logistics industry came into being formally during 1991-92 in Bangladesh. At that time, experience, dexterity, communication support and skilled workforce were scarce. Amidst these limitations, the industry has been able to advance and gain its significance by managing to reach imported goods worth about USD 52.84 billion during the fiscal year 2017-18 and exported products worth about USD 36.67 billion, according to data from the Bangladesh Bank. The industry and its linkage services, after its 30 years of struggle, now generate around 150,000 jobs directly. Freight forwarding has become one of the crucial sectors contributing to the economic growth with a soaring magnitude. Country’s economy largely depends on the revenue earned from the export and import functioning, and the services related thereto, with a current yearly import-export trade volume of over 80 billion US dollars. The major associations of exporters and importers i.e. BGMEA, BKMEA, LFMEAB, BFFEA, BJGEA, BEPZA and thousands of organizations and individuals solely rely upon the expertise of international logistics services provided by some 1,000 plus member companies of Bangladesh Freight Forwarders’ Association (BAFFA). BAFFA shoulders the crucial and daunting multimodal loads of moving, distributing and delivery of this fairly massive volume throughout international arenas in complete synchronization of networks and collaboration with hundreds of airports, seaports, hubs and agents. The commodities handled range from RMG, perishables, medicines, essentials, leather merchandises, raw jute and finished jute products, machineries, fisheries, electronics, agro commodities, industrial raw materials, equipment, project cargoes, and many more.

The segments: Bangladesh Freight and Logistics Market is segmented by functions i.e. freight transport, freight forwarding, warehousing and value-added services to meet the demands of the end users. Freight forwarding is one of the most widely used methods of international transport for corporates, businesses and personal use around the world. Freight forwarding companies coordinate the shipments of goods from one destination to another using a range of carriers or modes: air freight; ocean freight; road freight; railway freight; multi Modal freight – when more than one freight mode is used;

The process: While the process of international freight forwarding might rightly seem complex, these following facts could simplify the understanding of this subject.

A freight forwarder is a licensed, government authority approved, entrusted and responsible entity for the cross-border transportation of goods between the origin and a destination. Freight forwarding companies assist the shippers and the receivers with the entire supply chain process on multiple levels consisting of: export and import documentation; booking confirmation; packing; cargo insurance; indigenous transports at origin i.e. from the shipper’s factory to the sea-port; indigenous transports at destination i.e. from the airport to the prescribed warehouse; port handling; customs clearance; storage; inventory management; cross-border transportation.

The freight forwarders carry out chores as an intermediary between the shipper and transportation services, liaising with various carriers, negotiating prices, deciding upon the most suitable routing. They also oversee each step of the process. Using a freight forwarder to import and export goods can make the whole process much less stressful for the end-users with advantages of accuracy, time saving and cost control. The freight forwarding process can be broken up into six key stages, including: export haulage – the transfer of goods from its original source to the freight forwarders warehouse; export customs clearance – the goods receive clearance to leave its country of origin; origin handling – the unloading, inspection and validation of the cargo against its booking documents; import customs clearance – the customs paperwork for the cargo being checked by the authorities; destination handling – the handling of cargo once it reaches the destination office, including transfer to the import warehouse; import haulage – the transfer of cargo from the import warehouse to its final destination.

Freight forwarding companies adhere to strict regulations and will not carry certain goods and substances, particularly by air or sea freight. Although the list of prohibited items varies from country to country, freight forwarders are generally restricted to deal in dangerous Goods (including flammable liquid and toxic items); drugs (prescription and recreational); alcohol; batteries; perishable items (except for those on special express delivery); sharp objects.