Chinese firms linked to CPEC projects evade tax commitments in Bangladesh

China has suffered another blow as Chinese companies have violated the laws of the land in Bangladesh causing loss to the exchequer.

China which is already suffering from a poor image in corporate ethics, has hit another blow as Chinese companies have violated the laws of the land in Bangladesh causing loss to the exchequer.

Bangladesh authorities have found that a Chinese company China Road & Bridge Corporation (CRBC), a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) engaged in the construction of road and bridges in Bangladesh is involved in tax evasion while importing construction material for government projects, according to Bangladesh Live News.

Further, though China is a major fund provider to the South Asian countries such as Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka for infrastructure development, the business practices of its companies involved in implementing these projects have been put to scrutiny of late.

Meanwhile, It is not the first time that Chinese companies have violated the laws of the land in Bangladesh causing loss to the exchequer.

Earlier in December 2020, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) launched an investigation into ZTE Bangladesh, a subsidiary of the Chinese ZTE Corporation with many business operations in different sectors of the country, on the suspicion of tax evasion, according to Bangladesh Live News.

Further, as part of the investigation, Bangladesh's revenue board has already sent separate letters to different entities with whom it has its business deals.

Meanwhile, according to an estimate by Tax Justice Network (TJN), the tax abuse by multinational corporations (MNCs) and private individuals in Bangladesh is equivalent to at least three-fifths of the country's health budget or 14 percent of its annual education budget.

Further, China had to withdraw from three infrastructure projects in Bangladesh after allegations of embezzlement of funds in increasing project costs.

Also, the way Chinese companies do their business has come under suspicion in other parts of the world as well as multilateral financial institutions, especially the World Bank, which blacklisted some of the Chinese companies for non-compliance of integrity compliance program and Procurement Guidelines consistent with the principles set out in the World Bank Group Integrity Compliance Guidelines, according Bangladesh Live News.