Apparel exporters have urged the government to provide at least Tk1,500 crore in advance cash incentives from the export subsidy fund, saying that factory owners need special support to pay workers’ wages and bonuses ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr.
In a letter sent to the Finance Division secretary on Thursday, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) President AKM Salim Osman requested to release the amount, drawing from the fourth instalment of cash incentives for the April-June period of the current financial year, by 5 April.
On 28 March, the government released Tk2,000 crore (the third instalment) of cash incentives against export earnings of the local exporters for the January-March period of FY23.
The fourth instalment for the April-June period of the current financial year is supposed to be released at the end of July.
Salim Osman in his letter said the factory owners are facing huge pressure for the payment of wages and festival allowances in April as the ready-made garment (RMG) factories are currently running at only 50-60% of their capacity due to a lack of export orders. Owners are already struggling to pay the regular wages to their workers.
Payment of wages and allowances during the eid festival is a sensational issue and any kind of delay might trigger labour unrest.
The BKMEA president said the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war made the global economy infirm and Bangladesh’s industries had been struggling to survive.
“Without special allocation from the government, it would be difficult for the factory owners to manage the situation,” he said.
“Under the circumstances, we [RMG exporters] are requesting you to take necessary steps for releasing at least Tk1,500 crore from the fourth instalment of cash incentives to the exporters within 5 April,” the BKMEA president said in his letter to the finance secretary.
According to the official data, the government allocated cash incentives of Tk7,825 crore for the local exporters, except for those in the jute sector, in the national budget for FY23.
Out of Tk7,825, the government released Tk1,900 crore incentives in the first instalment on 28 August last year for the July-September period and Tk1,500 crore in the second instalment on 27 December for the October-December period.
