Economic Reporter :
Cottage, micro, small and medium enterprises (CMSMEs), which are the backbone of the economy, have been struggling to revive their battered business as the country entered into the second year of the pandemic.
The income and profitability of CMSMEs took a massive beating from the pandemic that hit the country in March last year.
Activity in many sectors has picked up in recent months. But the recovery rate of the CMSME sector is weaker-than-expected because of feeble financial health compared to that of the medium and large industrial units.
Most of the CMSMEs were closed for a long time due to the countrywide lockdown announced by the government last year and for the shortage of funds.
The highest number of job loss also took place in the CMSME sector.
For instance, Design by Rubina, a small leather and jute goods factory at Mirer Bazar in Gazipur, resumed its operation from December with only eight workers instead of 22 workers who were employed before the pandemic.
The factory was closed between April and November last year. Its pre-pandemic monthly sales amount was $5,000, which included exports.
The fallouts of Covid-19 shattered the dream of Rubina Akter Munni, managing director of Design by Rubina.
Her buyers in Dubai, the Philippines, Qatar and China are yet to pay her $1 lakh yet, hurting her incomes, the fashion designer-turned entrepreneur said.
The pandemic has shattered the dreams of thousands of budding entrepreneurs in almost all sectors, from garments, leather, jute, food-processing to plastic goods, printing and packaging.
The country’s main export-earning garment industry witnessed the severest impact when international clothing retailers and brands either cancelled or put hold work orders worth $3.18 billion. As the situation has improved to some extent, 90 per cent of the cancelled ordered have so far been reinstated.
Naim Bazlul Karim, managing director of APT Sweater Ltd, a small garment exporter based in Kamarpara area in Dhaka, faced a significant loss as his factory was closed for three months from April to June.
During the period, he did not get the subcontracting orders from large factories he used to receive as even the bigger industrial units have been suffering from the shortage of orders from international clothing retailers and brands.
“I have been trying to get back more work orders from my buyers,” said Karim, who received an order worth $200,000 from a buyer this month.
He employs 150 workers. He has not terminated any worker despite the closure of the factory for three months.
“My business is reviving gradually, and I recently recruited a few workers,” said Karim.
Despite the disastrous situation, some small entrepreneurs have done well, although their number is not high.
