Forum panel vows to brighten sector’s image

ABM Shamsuddin

The Forum panel vying in the upcoming elections of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) yesterday said it would work to brighten the image of the apparel industry as it unveiled the manifesto.

"If elected, we will also work to reduce the cost of business operations and expand markets," said ABM Shamsuddin, panel leader of the Forum, at a press conference at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka.

The polls for the two-year term of 2021-23 will be held on April 4. Thirty-five directorial posts are up for grabs and more than 2,000 voters will cast their votes.

Shamsuddin, also the chairman of Hannan Group, said he would work with international retailers and brands to ensure fair prices for the garment items supplied by local manufacturers.

"The prices of the Made-in-Bangladesh garment items are much lower compared to those produced in the competing countries."

According to the electoral pledges, the Forum would transform the BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology (BUFT) into a centre of excellence to create talents so that they can serve the industry as mid-level managers and in other areas.

Improving the skills of the entrepreneurs and mid-level managers and developing the negotiation skills of entrepreneurs would also be his assignments if he is elected as the president of the BGMEA, said Shamsuddin.

The prudential hopeful said he would hold an extraordinary general meeting to make the BUFT more functional and bring dynamism. A board of trustees has been running the institute for a long time, bypassing the BGMEA board, he said.

When the BUFT was established in 2009, the BGMEA committed that the institute would be run by the governors nominated by the BGMEA board.

While reading out the manifesto, Rubana Huq, president of the BGMEA, said the Forum would also work to revive small and medium enterprises, formulate policies to save sick industries, ensure their smooth exit, and guarantee buyers' accountability.

Moreover, the association will establish a staff college to train human resources and strengthen the labour arbitration cell to settle disputes using alternative ways, Huq said.

The panel pledged that it would work in the areas of technological efficiency, graduation from the grouping of the least-developed countries, skills, innovation, sustainability, and labour welfare.

The incumbent BGMEA chief said many local garment suppliers were facing troubles in running businesses because of the delay in payment by buyers as their sales dropped significantly because of the fallouts of Covid-19.

"Many renowned retailers and brands went bankrupt. So, both suppliers and bankrupted companies are facing a lot of troubles," she said.

According to Huq, the devastating impacts of the pandemic reminded her of the necessity of the creation of an unemployment protection scheme to pay wages to workers in times of emergency.

The panel said it would set up an online sales platform to widen the scope of e-commerce in the garment business and strengthen the sustainability reporting by factories.

The BGMEA awarded certificates to 47 garment factories on March 28 for their sustainability reports.