UNB, Dhaka :
Germany’s Parliamentarian State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development Hans-Joachim Fuchtel has lauded Bangladesh’s dynamism in readymade garment (RMG) production, saying it has bright scope to increase its share in global market.
“RMG production in Bangladesh is incredibly dynamic. This country is in an excellent position to increase its share in the world market,” he said during his three-day visit to Dhaka.
Fuchtel, however, said the tragic Rana Plaza building collapse put the lack of factory safety, the insufficient building standards and the inadequate salaries and working conditions of garment workers on the global agenda, said a German Embassy media release on Monday.
Fuchtel visited Bangladesh from October 24-26. The main objective of his visit was to get further insights into the current state of the Bangladesh RMG sector.
During his trip to Dhaka, he visited a factory, the Rana Plaza site and the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralyzed (CRP) in Savar where he planted a tree to commemorate the victims of the tragic Rana Plaza building collapse.
Furthermore, Fuchtel met Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, factory owners and union representatives.
The European Union is the biggest export market for the Bangladeshi RMG products, while Germany is the most important market within the EU.
The Parliamentarian State Secretary also said European consumers are getting more conscious regarding production and safety standards in Bangladesh’s RMG factories.
A week ago the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development had initiated a new action plan in cooperation with stakeholders in the garment sector.
In his meeting with Fuchtel, Tofail Ahmed underlined that Bangladesh is on the right path towards better factory safety and improved working conditions in the RMG sector.
Acknowledging this, Fuchtel emphasized that Germany is not only advocating for worker’s rights and safety standards since Rana Plaza, but that it has been a reliable partner for Bangladesh in terms of improvements in the RMG sector for many years.
“With our development cooperation, Germany will continue to support Bangladeshi companies and the Bangladesh, government,” he said.
Fuchtel also said that, by providing training, and expertise, “our existing initiatives in the RMG sector already contributed to an improvement in safety standards and worker’s rights in Bangladesh.”
Germany is one of the leading export nations of the world and, therefore, possesses a lot of knowledge that can also be valuable for this country.
“In our experience a frank and constructive dialogue between workers, owners and the government can secure a rapid and sustainable development. Therefore, my country would be happy to invite important stakeholders from Bangladesh – especially representatives of labour unions from the RMG sector – to Germany,” Fuchtel said.
