He requested that I send him an email with the requests to him, which I did on the same day. He "offered" to respond to me within 24 hours of receiving my email. At that point, I was quite impressed with his enthusiasm and assurance. I contacted him on May 31, and waited for his reply. Since that point, I have called him three times and sent him numerous emails (please review the emails in sequential order), to which I received no response.

This is June 20 and I have yet to receive a response from the official at EPB. He is a gatekeeper in Bangladesh's export market and a representative of Bangladesh's commitment to foreign buyers. He obviously failed at his responsibilities. If the main gatekeeper in Bangladesh's trade information centre is this indifferent, how can Bangladesh ever succeed in keeping the interest of foreign buyers?

On the other hand, when I contacted Malaysia's External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) on June 11, inquiring about the same products, I was very professionally and efficiently given the information I needed the very same day. I didn't even need to send an email and wait for a response (although I am sure they would have responded the same day if I had contacted them by email).

I received the same co-operation when I contacted Thailand's Department of Export Promotion (DEP), who referred me to their Chicago, USA trade centre office. Upon contacting them on June 14, I received a call back from one of their officials the very same day, with names and addresses of manufacturers they recommended.

This is what trade is in the real world. Bangladesh's government officials fail to deliver on their responsibilities that costs the entrepreneurs in Bangladesh in a big way. I may have the patience to go the extra mile and search without the EPB's help in Bangladesh for sources, however, very few foreign buyers ever will take a second look after EPB's failure.

Here is my correspondence with Mr. A:

31/5/04
Dear Mr. A,
Thank you for taking my call yesterday and assuring me of your support and help in my search for suppliers of certain products I am looking for from Bangladesh.

I am a Bangladeshi expatriate living in the U.S. and formerly a buyer for a large electrical devices manufacturing firm based out of Houston, Texas. I am currently in the process of facilitating the outsourcing of some products from Asia for some of the vendor contacts in the New York region. I have picked a few item categories that I think may be potentially sourced from Bangladesh. As I explained over the phone yesterday, I would appreciate all the information you could provide me with to help me find the right manufacturers in Bangladesh for the products I am looking for. I have listed the products below:

1) Paint accessories -- Paint rollers and brushes (bristle, foam, towel, etc). I am looking for quality manufacturers of these products in Bangladesh who have good financials and facilities. This is the most important category that I am looking for at this time. I need contact information for 1 or 2 top companies in this field.

2) Copper and music wire -- for spring and wire manufacturing. Need the names of some top manufacturers who have experience in manufacturing quality spring products from music wire and copper wire (at the very least, a company who produces quality music wire that could be used for spring manufacturing).

3) Turning tools and parts. I believe the Machine Tools Manufacturing plant in Bangladesh is capable of manufacturing these types of items. Is there a specific contact in that company that I can be put in contact with? If there is an engineer (preferably an English speaker, who can communicate directly with the buyer), please provide his name, email address and office telephone number.

4) Foam products. I need suppliers who can produce foam gaskets to be used in electrical devices. Neoprene and sponge rubber are some of the materials used in the gaskets that I am looking for. Most of the foam products that go into electrical devices in North America require certification by UL (Underwriters Laboratories) for fire resistancy. If there are manufacturers in Bangladesh with good laboratory/engineering departments that can work on these issues and understand and work towards meeting UL and other specifications, we can be successful in this area. There are other plain foam products that we will need, but I am eager to work with a foam producer who has wide capabilities in the foam area and have a sales staff that will be able to communicate effectively with me and an American buyer.

5) Rubber products. I need a manufacturer that can produce good quality rubber moulded parts that are highly specific (in terms of dimensions and material composition). If there is any company that can produce their own moulds or have access to companies that can produce and repair their moulds quickly, they will certainly be more qualified to get some of these orders.

6) Plastic - I don't have anything specific at the moment in the plastics area, however would appreciate it if you would please forward me the information of one or two top plastics moulding companies in Bangladesh who also make/repair their own moulds. This information will be useful in the near future.

I would appreciate it if your organisation would assist me in getting in touch with suitable manufacturers per your recommendations. I must stress that it will be extremely helpful to be in contact with a qualified engineer or salesperson in these companies who will be able to understand and communicate specific manufacturing and engineering related issues between the buyer and the factory on a regular basis. Also, all of these manufacturers should be willing to mail product samples when needed at their own cost via international courier service at the request of the buyers in the US.

Please provide me with contact information (Company name, address, telephone number, fax number, email, and contact name) for manufacturers of these types of products. Again, thank you in advance for your help in this matter.

Hoping to hear from you soon.
Best regards,
Mir A. Shafi

3/6/04
Mr. A,
I am writing to confirm whether you have received the email I sent to you a couple of days ago regarding my product inquiries. Could you please write back to me to confirm that you have received my email and are working towards a response? Thank you, and again, I appreciate your work.

Regards,
Mir A. Shafi

7/6/04
Hello, Mr. A. Are you there?
Regards,
Mir A. Shafi

At this point, I finally received an email from Mr. A on 8/6/04, stating that he couldn't find the email I sent him with the original product requests in his email account mailbox. He requested me to re-send it to him. He confirmed that he had seen the original email I sent to him on 5/31, but seemed to have lost it.

8/6/04
Mr. A,
I am re-sending my inquiry requests. I would appreciate a response from you as early as possible as I am scheduled to meet with two buyers this week regarding the paint rollers. I would really like to give them an indication of whether there is a suitable supplier in Bangladesh. At this time, I need information about the paint accessories, foam products and rubber products suppliers the most. I would appreciate you focusing on these first before moving on to the other requests. Thanks. Please find the details below. [Details as in initial email.]

Best regards,
Mir A. Shafi

8/6/04
Mr. A,
Please confirm that you have received the email I just sent you with the information about the products I am looking for.

Thanks,
Mir A. Shafi

9/6/04
Mr. A,
There is one additional item I need. Can you please let me know if there is any company in Bangladesh that can supply urea used in plastics moulding/manufacturing? If so, who? Please advise.

Regards,
Mir A. Shafi

10/6/04
Mr. A,
I really need some information about the paint accessories and foam suppliers. Have you any information yet? Time is of the essence with these buyers and I really need to get back to them. Please advise.

Regards,
Mir A. Shafi

15/6/04
Mr. A,
I have yet to get a response from you about the supplier info. I requested. Are you going to help me or not? Please advise.

Regards,
Mir A. Shafi

I am still waiting to hear back.