Garment makers yesterday urged Accord and Alliance, two foreign factory-inspection agencies, to accept the inspection certificates issued locally to avoid repetition.A delegation of International Labour Organisation’s Direct Contacts Mission (DCM), led by Karon Moanghan, deputy high court judge in the UK, held a meeting with BGMEA leaders to review the country’s progresses in workplace safety and labour rights.The other members of the team are Coen Kompier, Al-Wreidat Amin and Siska Dubbert.More than 1,300 garment factories, which are members of the Accord and Alliance, were inspected under a national initiative, said Siddiqur Rahman, president of BGMEA, at the meeting at the association’s office.“But many retailers and brands of Accord and Alliance do not want to accept the certificates given under the government initiative. As a result, those factories are facing difficulties in doing business.”“So, we urged the Accord and Alliance, through the ILO, to accept the certifications given under the government initiative. Otherwise, those factories will need to be inspected again, which will be expensive and time consuming,” Rahman added.Although most of the factories inspected under the national initiatives were small and medium ones, some members of the Accord and Alliance still purchase garment items from those units, he said.In 2013, both Accord and Alliance had reached a consensus on accepting each other’s certifications on more than 300 garment factories to avert overlapping in inspection as members of both the agencies source garment items from those factories.However, the Accord is now interested in inspecting some units. “We also urge the Accord through the ILO not to repeat the inspection process.”Syed Ahmed, inspector general of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, said 1,333 out of 1,355 factories have been inspected under the national initiative so far.A total of 3,407 factories have been inspected by all three inspection agencies, he added.After the twin industrial disasters — Tazreen Fashions fire and Rana Plaza building collapse — 200 European retailers formed the Accord and 26 North American retailers formed the Alliance to inspect the structural, fire and electrical safety elements in the garment sector.
