Gazi Anwarul Hoque :
Air shipment of readymade garments and other exports to foreign buyers have increased significantly in recent times due to disruption in road and railway transport to Chittaogong Port in the wake of nationwide nonstop blockade.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) data showed that the apparel sector counted additional Tk 500 million in airfreight charge in the last 34 days of blockade, insiders said.
An official of Biman Bangladesh airline said in last 34 days more than 20,000 tonnes of goods were shipped by air, a 40 per cent rise in recent time. He said everyday around 25 to 30 scheduled passenger flights and air freighters were carrying exportable product. Officials said air shipment costs 13 times more than the seaway but exporters typically turn to the costlier air shipment for maintaining the deadline of their shipment.
The shipment costs 30-32 US Cents for per kg by ocean going vessel but the rate goes as high as 4 US Dollar per kg in cases of airfreight. BGMEA President Atiqul Islam told that recent blockade programmes have appeared as a big blow for export business as they could not maintain smooth shipment in the recent days.
“The exporters have been depending on air route to avoid vandalism on the roads. The trend has been increasing and it is taking a toll on export cost,” the BGMEA Chief said, added, “This month most of RMG makers could not make timely shipment of their goods. So they are going to compel for air shipment to maintain the fixed time of buyers. Otherwise they will face order cancellations.”
“If the present political instability continues for long time, the export of RMG product and other goods will not be able to fulfill the target in this fiscal year,” said Shahidullah Azim, vice president of BGMEA. Bangladesh is the world’s second largest garment exporter after China. The sector provides jobs for 4m people, mostly women, and has spurred economic growth to over 6 percent a year in the last decade.
