Economists and industry leaders made renewed emphasis on long term political stability to ensure sustained growth in RMG export and its continued growth which is the major foreign currency earner of the nation.
At a discussion organized by CEMS Global, an event management company in cooperation with The Daily Star at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre which was organized in the sideline of TexApp Bangladesh trade show, the discussants said RMG sector needs to be protected by all policy support and on top of it from political chaos.
World Bank lead economists Zahid Hussain told the gathering that long term political stability is necessary for the continued growth of garment exports, this is the single most challenge to continue productivity uninterrupted.
Representatives of international retailers, machinery suppliers, policymakers and entrepreneurs were present in the event. Zahid Hussain then added that the infrastructure bottlenecks need to be similarly addressed to run the business and continue shipment in time.
The major infrastructure includes efficient roads and highways, port, customs and energy supply chain. It also includes quick reform of government policies and improvement in owner-workers relations to make the environment business-friendly.
If these problems are addressed properly, Bangladesh has scope for attracting more investment in other sectors, while garment sector is becoming a major area of investment by investors from abroad, he said.
BGMEA president Atiqul Islam said foreign investors can invest in backward
linkage industries in the country but the basic textile and garment industry must remain an exclusive area to local investors.
He said local entrepreneurs have invested a lot in the garment sector over the years. They have developed the sector, both in terms of garment products and markets. So there is no need for foreign investment in the basic garment sector, he emphasized.
The garment sector now needs a pool of skilled people, it is already suffering from shortage of skilled manpower, he said laying emphasis on enhanced efforts to help develop the supply of quality workers in the economy.
He said the garment sector passed the worst time in 2013 after the Rana Plaza collapse. But it has been able to make a turn around again with comprehensive reforms and implementation of various safety regimes. Now the industry is expecting a good business in the coming years again, he said.
Mohammad Hatem, first vice-president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the knitters’ platform, said the country needs to fix the gas crisis to keep up business growth.
He said Japan is a particularly promising market of $35 billion turnover a year and Bangladesh’s export to that country is on steady rise, He said more government support is essential to make an important place for Bangladesh garment in Japan’s market.
Referring to government policy to support the garment sector, Member of National Board of Revenue Syed Md Aminul Karim said the government has already cut import duty on import of fire safety equipment to zero to make workplace safe to workers.
The government will lose over Tk 2,000 crore from the duty waiver alone on this merchandise, he argued.
Source: Weekly Holiday
