To this effect, the SEDF, a multi-donor funded facility managed by International Finance Corporation (IFC), and BGMEA have recently organised a roundtable in Dhaka to bring together BGMEA directors and leading international buyers, according to a press release.

The discussion focused mainly on expanding the export market and how the association can contribute to this effort, and highlighted BGMEA's initiative regarding corporate social responsibility and minimum wage.

The BGMEA will do everything possible to bring significant changes in the readymade garment sector, especially on compliance issues and market expansion, said Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury Parvez, the association's president.

The BGMEA has set a plan to make all RMG factories fully compliant by 2010. It has urged buyers to price Bangladeshi garments appropriately to help cope with the costs for compliance.

"In order to remain competitive, we must adhere to international standards and for this IFC-SEDF has been trying to coordinate the two important parties involved -- the buyers and the manufacturers," said Deepak P Adhikary, deputy general manager of IFC-SEDF.

Regarding the unified code of conduct, he said, "We have already standardised a health and safety checklist in collaboration with 10 international buyers that has been distributed to 1,000 factories in Bangladesh."