Staff Reporter :An improvement in working condition and enforcement in compliance rules in the readymade garment (RMG) factories could enhance productivity of the workers and promote competitiveness of the local industries in global arena, according to a World Bank report. It said better safety conditions and other compliance policies would have to be ensured to create better jobs in Bangladesh.The report titled “Stitches to Riches: Apparel Employment, Trade, and Economic Development in South Asia”, was unveiled at a programme in Dhaka on Monday afternoon. Bangladesh has the largest apparel export industries in South Asia and at 6.4 per cent, the largest market share of global apparel exports among South Asian countries, the report said, adding that clothing exports could create more and better jobs if Bangladesh improves productivity, product quality and reliability, and by enforcing better safety conditions and other compliance rules.It also said that Bangladesh apparel industry has steadily increased its share of global apparel trade above the world average and greater than China but lower than that of the Southeast Asian countries.Bangladesh’s apparel exports totalled US$25.4 billion in the fiscal 2014-15 accounting for over 80 per cent of the nation’s export earnings and employing around 4 million workers, an estimated 55-60 per cent of whom are women.The report highlights that Bangladesh needs to improve performance in non-cost factors which is important to global buyers.Successfully implementing reforms will help Bangladesh increase exports and capture more jobs from China’s gradual exit from the clothing market and compete with Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia.For the US market, a 10 per cent increase in Chinese apparel prices would increase apparel employment in Bangladesh by 4.22 per cent. “The apparel industry in Bangladesh tells a remarkable story of women empowerment by significantly increasing female participation in the labour sector. The industry has grown over the space of a few short decades to become the second largest in the world. It has become a key driver of the Bangladesh economy and the nation’s development,” Qimiao Fan, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh said this at the launching ceremony of the report.Qimiao Fan said: “The apparel industry is extremely important to Bangladesh’s economy, accounting for 83 per cent of total exports. The potential decrease in Chinese exports presents a huge opportunity for Bangladesh if it can meet requirements of global buyers”. Gladys Lopez-Acevedo, report co-author and a Lead Economist for the World Bank, said: “Bangladesh should capitalise on its position as regional leader and implement policies to improve the quality of its product. “Bangladesh should focus on sustaining the creation and expansion of good jobs, bringing more women into the work force, diversifying its products to increase skills and values.” The report further said, “East Asian countries like Vietnam and Cambodia are capturing the market share of global garment exports faster than Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. It said, wages, a key component in the industry, range from about half a dollar per hour in Bangladesh to over a dollar in India. That is far below than about $2.5 in China. “The global retailers are paying close attention to conditions in their factories,” added the World Bank report.
