Dhaka: Bangladesh announced on Sunday that it has granted a licence to tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service, as fears grow over the impact of new US tariffs on the country's crucial garment sector.

The satellite-based internet service is expected to be launched at a government-supported investment summit scheduled to begin in Dhaka on Monday.

“We granted them approval,” Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud, chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority, told reporters on Sunday.

Mahmud stated that the licence had been approved on 28 March, several days before US President Donald Trump introduced a sweeping tariff plan that shook global markets.

US Tariffs threaten garment industry

The newly imposed tariff on Bangladeshi goods stands at 37 percent, up from the previous 16 percent duty on cotton, causing serious concern in the country’s garment sector.

Musk, who holds a prominent role in the White House as Trump’s right-hand man, has come under scrutiny for his interactions with foreign leaders, raising questions about the intersection of his business and political activities.

Bangladesh’s interim government, which assumed power following a student-led uprising that overthrew the former hardline regime in August 2024, is actively seeking diplomatic backing from the United States.

Interim leader Muhammad Yunus held an emergency meeting on Saturday to evaluate the potential consequences of the tariffs on Bangladesh’s garment industry, which is the second largest in the world.

Yunus to appeal directly to Trump

Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, will write to President Trump about the tariff hike, according to his press secretary on Sunday.

Musk and Yunus had previously discussed the launch of Starlink in February, with an emphasis on the opportunities the service could provide to Bangladesh’s youth, women, and rural communities.

At the time, a statement from Yunus’ media office highlighted the service's potential to benefit “Bangladesh’s enterprising youth, rural and vulnerable women, and remote communities”.

Garment sector faces uncertain future

The textile and garment industry makes up around 80 percent of Bangladesh’s total exports. According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the country exports garments worth $8.4 billion annually to the United States, accounting for about 20 percent of its total ready-made garment exports.

AFP