Bangladesh’s Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs gave policy approval on June 16, 2026, for a 300-acre free-trade zone beside the Matarbari deep-sea port in Maheshkhali, Cox’s Bazar, according to the article. A second 300-acre zone is planned near Chattogram port. The commentary argues that the country must closely assess the economic and geopolitical consequences of what it describes as Bangladesh’s first free-trade-zone initiative.

The article contends that India’s northeastern states could benefit substantially through lower transport costs and shorter delivery times, while Indian businesses could use imported inputs and local labor to export finished goods to ASEAN markets. It contrasts successful free zones in Jebel Ali, Shenzhen and Rotterdam with examples in Panama and Mexico that it says produced weak domestic linkages, customs problems, dependence or environmental damage.

The first phase of Matarbari port development had an approved cost of Tk17,000 crore, including about Tk13,000 crore in JICA loans. The broader MIDA master plan estimates investment of $60 billion to $65 billion over 30 years. The article calls for economic returns from transit concessions, duty-free access for Bangladeshi goods in India’s northeast, 40% local raw-material use, and Bangladeshi capacity and control in port management.