Unilever Bangladesh and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) have rolled out an initiative to work together on a number of Sustainable Development Goals in order to improve the livelihoods of a million apparel workers. Kedar Lele, chief executive officer and managing director of Unilever Bangladesh, and Rubana Huq, president of the BGMEA, signed a memorandum of understanding at the Radisson hotel in Dhaka on Thursday to roll out the initiative named Aastha (trust), according to a press release. Through the partnership, Unilever, the largest fast moving consumer goods company in Bangladesh, intends to bring its brands’ purpose to life while doing genuine good for the society. The garment sector, being the bulwark of economic growth for Bangladesh, has been making a crucial contribution of approximately 11 percent to the gross domestic product. With more than 4.4 million workers employed in the sector, about 60.8 percent of whom are women, the growth of garment industry has far reaching implications for the economy. The partnership will be the first-ever sectoral approach to fast-tracking SDG progress in Bangladesh. It aims to positively impact more than 1 million workers and enhance their overall health and well-being. Four SDGs and six national performance indicators have been identified as the key focus areas of the partnership. The SDGs are: SDG 3 (Ensure good health and promote well-being for all at all ages); SDG 6 (Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all); SDG 12 (Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns); and SDG 17 (Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development). In addition, Unilever Bangladesh will make its products available inside factory premises at special prices exclusively for the workers. Md Nojibur Rahman, principal secretary to the prime minister, Nitin Paranjpe, global chief operating officer of Unilever, Robert Chatterton Dickson, British high commissioner to Bangladesh, Harry Verweij, Netherlands ambassador to Bangladesh, and Sanjiv Mehta, president of Unilever South Asia, were present at the MoU signing ceremony.  Unilever Bangladesh also signed independent MoUs with garment factories to improve livelihoods of their workers through different initiatives. The factories are Newage Apparels, Fakir Fashion, AR Jeans Producer, Reza Fashions, Fakhruddin Textile Mills, Laila Styles, Dekko Accessories, Ecofab Ltd, Dekko Readywears, Dekko Garments, Dekko Globus Fashion, Agami Fashion, Esquire Knit Composite, Meghna Knit Composite, Sublime Greentex, Executive Hi-Fashion, Renaissance Apparels, and Southern Garments Ltd.

We need to start investing in the future of RMG

Nelson Mandela, the revered political leader, philanthropist and president of South Africa, said that “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” Wise words that should be considered when we consider the role education can play in the continuing development of a sustainable ready-made garment (RMG) industry in Bangladesh.

With the world’s population reaching seven billion people and rising, with increasingly limited natural resources globally, it has never been more pertinent to ensure the education of the next generation of Bangladesh apparel industry professionals in sustainable development practices. As was recently highlighted by UNESCO: “There is growing international recognition of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) as an integral element of quality education and a key enabler for sustainable development.” Given the importance of the topic, we need to be encouraging the introduction of ESD in the curriculum of our secondary and higher education tiers in Bangladesh. The benefits of the establishment of an effective ESD system are manifold, and of particular importance to the textile and RMG industries of our nation. As was highlighted during a panel discussion at the recent November edition of Bangladesh Denim Expo, where improvements needed to increase the sustainable credentials of the Bangladesh denim industry were discussed, education in sustainable practices is woefully lacking in Bangladesh today. We are not alone in this. The UNESCO report stresses that, despite the importance of ESD systems, the uptake in the Western world is negligible. This has been echoed in recent debates during the United Kingdom’s election campaign, with politicians from all parties promoting policies to increase the awareness of sustainability in the secondary and higher education tiers. I feel now is the time for Bangladesh to adopt a proactive approach to remedy the situation. The importance of the RMG sector and related textile industries to Bangladesh cannot be emphasized enough. Since its foundation, the RMG sector has enjoyed rapid expansion, reaching an audience of international buyers and contributing to 84% of our nation’s GDP, employing some four million people, and contributing over $34 billion to the economy. As all of us involved in the sector are increasingly aware, the industry is facing challenging times. We face increased price pressures, increased customer demands and, as we are all aware, a growing demand to operate in a sustainable, ethical transparent manner. Given the importance of sustainability to the RMG industry and for the wider beneficial effects for the nation, should we not all be encouraging a fresh approach as to how the subject of sustainability is addressed throughout our education system? How can we expect to develop in a truly sustainable manner both as an industry and a country if the lifeblood of the sector, our next generation of RMG industry employees, are not aware of sustainable issues and are not au fait with the benefits that they can bring? However, in a climate where sustainability issues are becoming increasingly more critical, the Bangladesh education system is sadly lacking in providing the necessary education in these fields to the next generation. UNESCO specifies that the education for sustainable development involves integrating key sustainable development issues into teaching and learning. Included in this program should be instructions regarding climate change, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity, poverty reduction, and sustainable consumption. ESD consequently promotes and enables competencies including critical thinking, the imagining of future scenarios and making decisions in a collaborative way. Equally important is to expose students to advances in technology and sustainable practices and systems and the best way to implement these. Imagine, if you will, the advantages to be gained by the RMG sector if a system of education in sustainability was introduced in the country. We would have, after a period of time, access to higher education graduates possessing ingrained competence in the field of sustainability. Over and above that we would be able to show to the global community that we are pro-actively developing sustainable thinking and practices amongst the next generation. As opposed to having to learn “on the ground” in the workplace, this new generation of RMG industry employees would be able to contribute in a positive manner in areas of sustainability and, quite possibly, be able to offer a fresh outlook on sustainable initiatives that the industry could adopt and pass these to the existing management teams and business owners. Advancing this sustainable development education approach will necessitate involvement and funding from government and educational bodies and, most importantly, interaction from industry leaders from the RMG sector. It will take time — Rome was not built in a day. However, by taking the lead in this field, we have the opportunity to show our customers, business partners, and the wider global community that we, as an industry and a nation we are both sincere about the sustainability agenda and are, truly, leading where others can only follow. We need to see this as an important investment for the sustainable future of the nation’s RMG industry and, more importantly, for the long-term environmental and social benefits for the nation as a whole.    Our industry will face many challenges over the years ahead and we need to be fully prepared to ensure that it is “match fit.” Encouraging the development of the next generation of apparel and textile industry employees in sustainable issues will bring long-term benefits to aid the RMG sector’s evolution and the nation’s elevation to developing country status. As an industry and as a nation as a whole, we need to take the responsibility of ensuring the education of sustainable practices and stressing their importance for the long-term benefit of the apparel and textiles sectors and the planet as a whole. Education in sustainable development will encourage the next generation of apparel industry drivers to change the way they think and to work in a manner that ensures a sustainable, responsible future for our industry. 

The country’s big garment factories that adopted compliance measures prescribed by the Western retailers’ platforms the Accord and the Alliance as well as the National Initiative made profit up to 10.72 per cent in 2018, according to a survey. The same factories had reported their profits at an average of 9.80 per cent in 2013. Besides, the large factories that were not included in any of the three safety programmes also recorded 8.74 per cent profit in 2018, up by 1.43 per cent from that in 2013, the survey revealed. Industry leaders, however, differed with the survey findings. The Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) conducted the primary survey on 508 garment factories across four districts — Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj and Chattogram. Out of 508 firms, 255 were adopting the compliance measures suggested by any of the three initiatives – the Accord, the Alliance and the National Initiative. The remaining 253 have never been listed under any of the three remediation programmes. The BIDS presented the findings of the survey on ‘Impact of Compliance on RMG Industry of Bangladesh’ at its Research Almanac 2019 at a city hotel on December 2. Small garment factories that did not adopt compliance measures saw their profit margin going down. Still, they made higher profits (5.0 per cent in 2018 and 6.04 per cent in 2013 respectively) compared to those that adopted safety programmes, according to the BIDS survey findings. The small RMG factories that took safety measures reported that their profit margin stood at 3.56 per cent in 2018, up by 1.99 per cent from the level in 2013. On the other hand, medium garment factories (both inspected and not-inspected) reported a fall in their profit margin in 2018 from 2013, it showed. The findings, however, showed that medium garment factories’ that are not listed under any of the three initiatives made higher profit of 10.06 per cent in 2013. The profit fell to 7.41 per cent in 2018. The revenue of medium sized ones under any of the three safety measures also saw a decline in their profit margin that came down slightly to 8.26 per cent in 2018. The BIDS categorised the garment factories based on the number of workers under the industrial policy 2006, said Tahreen Tahrima Chowdhury, one of the authors of the BIDS survey. Factories having workers up to 120 are categorised as small, 121 to 500 medium and more than 500 large, she explained. When asked, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Dr Rubana Huq said, “I agree with everything in the study except the bit on profit. I seriously doubt the figures and would like to have a clear understanding about where these figures have come from.” It is literally impossible to make even 2.0 per cent profit and most manufacturers are bleeding now, she said. “Post-December 2018, after the minimum wage hike, none of us is having an easy time. The question of profit is inconceivable,” Ms Huq noted. “We are safe today, so are our workers,” she said adding but mere compliance is not bringing us business. Buyers are giving even lower prices now and are shifting their sourcing to other countries that have devalued their currencies significantly and are competitive, she noted. Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Director Fazlee Shamim Ehsan also disagreed with the survey findings and said small units are struggling to survive. The medium ones are making higher profits than the larger ones and both the categories of units make profit not more than 5.0 per cent, he noted. He, however, claimed there is no export-oriented garment factory that is not listed under any of the three safety programmes. Those that are not under any of the safety programmes might do sub-contracting jobs, he noted.