DHAKA, Sept 21, 2023 (BSS) - Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters
Association (BGMEA) President Faruque Hassan has urged the brands, retailers
and representatives of buyers to kindly consider a rational price upcharge in
current price negotiations for the orders to be produced from December 1,
2023 onwards.
 
Faruque made the call in a letter considering the standard and cost of living
of the workers and the inflation.

He said regardless of Bangladesh's position and stake in the global apparel
value chain-- as manufacturers or buyers-- all are passing through a tough
time.
 
"The unprecedented inflation, leading to contractionary policies by central
banks in all developed countries, is affecting disposable income, spending
and demand for products. While managing supply chain has become difficult at
retail end, we, the manufacturers are in a complete 'nightmare situation' to
manage our capacities, supply chain, planning and forecasting," he said.

Mentioning that the local exporters have been quite successfully able to
retain growth momentum in export, so far, Faruque mentioned the zero
tolerance and committed efforts and investments made by the industry to
remediate and ensure complete safety at workplace.

"This makes us unique as a nation and we want to continue this journey with
you. We're working continuously to improvise ourselves. We're making all the
efforts to make business easier and efficient. Some of our steps in recent
past have already brought results, especially with regard to importation of
textile from India through multiple land ports, relaxation of rules regarding
partial shipment while importing textile from India," he added.
 
The BGMEA president said the direct cargo train between India and Bangladesh
and improved warehousing capacity in land custom ports has opened a gateway
for improved trade logistics.

Government also waived the rule of mandatory fumigation for importing cotton
from USA. At the same time, the rule regarding import of raw materials on FOC
basis is relaxed from four months to six months, he continued.
 
Faruque Hassan said Bangladesh now have 202 LEED certified RMG factories of
which 73 are platinum. "We're working with a clear sustainability vision to
significantly decarbonize our industry and adopt circularity by 2030, which
aligns with your priorities and complements your values as well," he added.

Mentioning that they are trying to make BGMEA as a futuristic organization,
Faruque said they have established a Future Center at BGMEA which covers a
Center for Innovation, Center for Efficiency and Center for OSH to foster
innovation in every segment of the trade; the Textile Technology Business
Center (TTBC), which is an offspring of the Partnership for Cleaner Textile
(PaCT) project; a Responsible Business Hub (RBH) in BGMEA to strengthen the
capacities of our manufacturers to adapt and comply with the globally
emerging due diligence; and a Circular Fashion Unit to deal with the circular
economy initiatives.
 
Since inflation and production cost hike including gas, electricity, fuel,
transport and other costs, is squeezing the breathing space, he said in fact
the workers, who are the lifeline of this industry, is suffering the most
from the inflation.

"We know that the price level has also gone a bit higher, but barely enough
to cope up with the cost upsurge. However, you may know that the Minimum Wage
Board for the garment workers is working to review the current minimum
wages," he said.

The BGMEA president hoped that before the end of this year a new minimum wage
will be declared and there will be quite a significant increase, if the trend
of previous reviews as well as the aggregate inflation in past five years is
considered.
 
He said, in fact, in today's world there is no respite from inflation, be it
Bangladesh or any country around the world. Well, the Minimum Wage Board is
an independent body, with equal representation from workers, owners and
independent groups. "It works independently, so it's difficult for me to
speculate about the hike in wage," the BGMEA president added.

He said: "As we commit ourselves to continuously delivering the better, we're
leaving no stone unturned to optimize the value of our spending, with an
uncompromising stance on ethical and responsible business. Let us be more
empathetic toward each other and find the space for realignment and continued
partnership."