Business Desk :
A World Bank report said that more than 40 per cent manufacturing firms in Bangladesh still use handwritten documents for business administration and three-fourth of them carry out manual inspection for quality control.
The report ‘Gearing up for the Future of Manufacturing in Bangladesh’ was released on Thursday.
It found that most of the firms still use basic or near-basic technologies which it identified as a challenge to productivity in Bangladesh.
WB said that the manufacturing sector could improve productivity by strengthening innovation and adopting technology in firms.
Half of the manufacturing firms are run by undergraduate people, finds the report.
Firms having graduate managers have 10 per cent higher level of technology comparing to those run with undergraduate managers, the report added.
The report laid stress on building human capital and enabling firms’ access to advisory services in cost-effective ways.
The report said improving manufacturing sector’s productivity would be crucial for Bangladesh to boost export growth and help the economy rebound from the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic.
It also identified capability of managers and workers, connectivity to international markets and complementary markets and institutions as pillars to overcome the Covid impact.
Adopting new technologies and business practices would also help firms recover faster from the Covid-19 crisis, added.
World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Mercy Tembon said, “Bangladesh’s success in readymade garments export has created about four million jobs and driven economic growth. But, in recent years, job creation in the RMG sector slowed due to automation and the trend will likely accelerate in the post pandemic world.”
