Staff Reporter :
The country’s ready-made garment (RMG) sector, the main exporting sector, is passing through a serious crisis amid the global economic shock resulted from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
The world-wide ongoing vaccination activities have not yet showed any hope of removing the crisis at the moment. Under this reality, $50 billion export earnings target from the apparel sector by 2021 have now become a nightmare.
The RMG sector, which contributes a lion’s share to the total exports, fetched $18.40 billion in proceeds with 3.44 per cent negative growth in July-January period of the current fiscal year. It missed the target for the period by 4.85 per cent.
Keeping it in mind, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) is now emphasizing on installation of a dedicated wing at the Bangladesh foreign missions to increase export by creating new markets of the RMG products.
Helping the exporters, there is a wing named commercial council at each foreign missions but the wings are not able to create impact an increasing the export earnings as the officials are not dedicated for the sector.
Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, former president of the FBCCI, told The New Nation, “I personally think it is very much important and effective to expand the country’s export, if the wing works dedicatedly.”
“But first of all, the government should appoint dedicated and skilled officials to work on some fixed items to create new markets. It is not a matter of concern that RMG or commercial council wing whatever the name of it,” he added.
Mohammad Hatem, Senior Vice President of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said that they have been working to open the wing at the offices of the foreign missions for long time.
The dedicated wing will help to expand new markets of the RMG sector along with product diversification and development, he added.
Initiatives will be taken to install RMG wing at the offices of the Bangladesh missions with a view to expanding new markets of the sector, said Jahangir Alam, Panel leader of the Shadhinata Forum of the RMG sector, while speaking at a press conference at a city hotel on Sunday.
“The wing will provide information about brands, buyers and markets. It will also resolve disputes between the buyer and manufacturer,” he added.
He also said that they will try to create up-to-date industry-friendly labor policy by amending the obsolete sections of the Labor Act, if they are elected in the upcoming BGMEA election.
