BSS, Dhaka :
The Bangladesh government has taken a number of steps for obtaining the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) which is expected to be reviewed in May this year in the US congress.
Commerce Ministry sources quoted US Ambassador in Bangladesh, Dan W Mozena as saying recently that Bangladesh’s progress on the front was “satisfactory.”
Earlier, Commerce Minister Tofael Ahmed told a group of businessman recently that 13 of the 16 conditions for restoration of GSP facility has been met and the other three will be fulfilled soon.
On the side of the first meeting with the US under the Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement (TICFA) which is likely to be held on April 6, the GSP issue will also be raised, Commerce Minister Tofael Ahmed disclosed this while briefing journalists at his ministry recently, after a meeting with the US Ambassador.
Besides, a team from US including a group of private investors will visit Bangladesh
in the first week of April to discuss the issue, the minister added. A Bangladesh delegation is expected to visit Washington D. C, next month to brief US on the developments in Bangladesh.
The US was planning to suspend the GSP following the tragic fire that killed about a hundred workers at Tazreen Garments in November 2012. Recently, the factory owners have been taken to task.
In April 2013 when another factory housed in Rana Plaza at savar collapsed killing more than a thousand workers, the US president in June 2013 suspended GSP facility to Bangladesh, following a petition forwarded by the AFL-CIO, the US labour confederation.
In order to qualify for trade preferences under the US GSP, beneficiary countries must meet certain requirements, including taking steps to ensure internationally recognized worker’s rights for the workers in the country.
The United States is currently reviewing Bangladesh’s eligibility for GSP benefits based on the worker’s rights criterion, office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) informed.
On the other hand, The Foundry, a publication of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, said that withdrawal of GSP will increase the cost of export, ultimately eliminating jobs.
Although a few garment buyers have announced their withdrawal from Bangladesh, more than 30 global brands, including H&M, Tesco, PVH and Inditex, have signed accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh to improve the working condition in the country’s RMG factories.
In fact, H&M – the largest buyer of Bangladesh made clothing – has publicly stated that it will not withdraw orders and the company is committed to continue sourcing from the South Asian nation.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has appointed thirty-nine factory inspectors to strengthen government’s effort to ensure safety in garment factories.
The recruitment is part of the government’s plan to appoint additional 200 inspectors to fulfill a requirement set by the American government to revive the GSP, Labor Secretary Mikail Shipar said. The ministry will have a total of 310 inspectors after the new recruits join work, Shipar added.
In the US Senate a hearing on the GSP facility for
Bangladesh was held in February 2014 where Nisha Desai Biswal, the US under Secretary for South and Central Asia submitted her report. She cited Bangladesh’s efforts to improve labour condition and said that 100 trade unions were registered, so far.
The Bangladesh government has taken a number of steps for obtaining the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) which is expected to be reviewed in May this year in the US congress.
Commerce Ministry sources quoted US Ambassador in Bangladesh, Dan W Mozena as saying recently that Bangladesh’s progress on the front was “satisfactory.”
Earlier, Commerce Minister Tofael Ahmed told a group of businessman recently that 13 of the 16 conditions for restoration of GSP facility has been met and the other three will be fulfilled soon.
On the side of the first meeting with the US under the Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement (TICFA) which is likely to be held on April 6, the GSP issue will also be raised, Commerce Minister Tofael Ahmed disclosed this while briefing journalists at his ministry recently, after a meeting with the US Ambassador.
Besides, a team from US including a group of private investors will visit Bangladesh
in the first week of April to discuss the issue, the minister added. A Bangladesh delegation is expected to visit Washington D. C, next month to brief US on the developments in Bangladesh.
The US was planning to suspend the GSP following the tragic fire that killed about a hundred workers at Tazreen Garments in November 2012. Recently, the factory owners have been taken to task.
In April 2013 when another factory housed in Rana Plaza at savar collapsed killing more than a thousand workers, the US president in June 2013 suspended GSP facility to Bangladesh, following a petition forwarded by the AFL-CIO, the US labour confederation.
In order to qualify for trade preferences under the US GSP, beneficiary countries must meet certain requirements, including taking steps to ensure internationally recognized worker’s rights for the workers in the country.
The United States is currently reviewing Bangladesh’s eligibility for GSP benefits based on the worker’s rights criterion, office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) informed.
On the other hand, The Foundry, a publication of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, said that withdrawal of GSP will increase the cost of export, ultimately eliminating jobs.
Although a few garment buyers have announced their withdrawal from Bangladesh, more than 30 global brands, including H&M, Tesco, PVH and Inditex, have signed accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh to improve the working condition in the country’s RMG factories.
In fact, H&M – the largest buyer of Bangladesh made clothing – has publicly stated that it will not withdraw orders and the company is committed to continue sourcing from the South Asian nation.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has appointed thirty-nine factory inspectors to strengthen government’s effort to ensure safety in garment factories.
The recruitment is part of the government’s plan to appoint additional 200 inspectors to fulfill a requirement set by the American government to revive the GSP, Labor Secretary Mikail Shipar said. The ministry will have a total of 310 inspectors after the new recruits join work, Shipar added.
In the US Senate a hearing on the GSP facility for
Bangladesh was held in February 2014 where Nisha Desai Biswal, the US under Secretary for South and Central Asia submitted her report. She cited Bangladesh’s efforts to improve labour condition and said that 100 trade unions were registered, so far.
