Plastic goods exports have risen significantly in FY2018–19 financial year (July-March) thanks to the availability of raw materials at a cheaper rate, quality production, good mould, a robust government policy framework, enhanced manufacturing efficiency, and exporting products to new and untapped countries, according to industry insiders. According to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), a growth rate of 18.34 per cent and net export earnings of USD 87.09 million were achieved in FY2018–19 (July-March). The export earning was USD 73.59 million during the same period (July-March) in FY2017–18. Jashim Uddin, president of the Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers’ and Exporters’ Association (BPGMEA), told The Independent that the US and European countries have increased their purschase of plastic products from Bangladesh. As a new market, Bangladesh has started exporting plastic products to Germany. “To meet the overseas demand, most of the export factories are increasing their respective capacities. We have been exporting reasonable quantities of film plastic, garments accessories made of plastic, and household items to many countries around the world,” he said. Shamim Ahmed, former president of the BPGMEA, said Bangladesh is producing four categories of plastics—flexible packaging, toys, household products and garments accessories—which eventually contributed to the boom in export of plastic goods. “But plastic wastes have seen a negative growth of -28.96 per cent. India is importing plastic wastes from us, but the quantity is very small,” he explained. However, India had started taking recycled PET flakes. Earlier, China used to take those from Bangladesh, he added. PET is used as a raw material for making packaging materials like bottles and containers. Citing another reason, Shamim Ahmed said that the price of plastic raw materials is stable, which is promoting the export growth. He also said that China is the prime plastic manufacturing country in the world. As it has started moving towards high-tech industries, there is a massive opportunity for Bangladeshi exporters to increase their global market share, he added. At present, Bangladesh mostly exports plastic products to the US, Canada and European countries, said Ahmed. According to the BPGMEA, the plastic industry contributes around USD 900 million to the garments accessories market. Garments accessories and allied products, such as hangers, buttons, clips, collarbones and collar chips, are supplied by local plastic suppliers. Pointing out some challenges, Ahmed suggested that proper policy support and further financial incentives could lead to a three-fold increase in this sector’s export earnings in the next couple of years. The local plastic market, now worth around Tk. 35,000 crores, is growing,” he said. “There are 5,000 small, medium and large plastic goods manufacturing units. The number was around 3,000 units a couple of years back,” he added. Around 1.4 million people are engaged in this sector, he added.
