The Centre of Excellence for the Bangladesh Apparel Industries (CEBAI) is going to conduct a research on manufacturing sector with a view to earning $50 billion export from the manufacturing sector by 2021, said Siddiqur Rahman, President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) on Sunday.”The manufacturing sector needs more skilled manpower to attain the targeted export earning”, said the BGMEA President while addressing an agreement signing ceremony among International Labour Organisation (ILO) and CEBAI) in the conference room of the BGMEA in the city. According to the deal,the ILO will provide $3.50 lakh to conduct the research. The research will increase the productivity and quality of the RMG sector, said the BGMEA president. “Although prospects in the sector are bright, the lack of appropriate skills remains a major challenge for the industry and millions of garment workers alike. The industry has enormous scope to improve productivity through skills development. By doing so, it will be able to truly meet its potential, move further up the value chain and away from competing on the basis low prices alone”, said the BGMEA president. The newly formed Center of Excellence will play an important role in this respect by providing skills development programs that are demand driven and market responsive. By training workers to nationally recognized standards it will also help them to earn higher wages, he also said. Based in Ashulia, a ready-made garment (RMG) cluster area close to Dhaka, the Centre of Excellence will help meet the need for a skilled labour force in the RMG sector by providing competency-based training in areas where demand from industry is greatest. It will also undertake research on RMG related areas and act as an industry think tank. The Centre of Excellence is an initiative supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO), Government of Sweden, leading Swedish fashion retailer Hennes and Mauritz (H&M) and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
