Functional CETP a crying need for leather industry

Bangladesh's leather sector has the potential of becoming the second largest foreign currency earner after ready-made garments. But it is still struggling on account of the absence of a properly functional central effluent-treatment plant (CETP) in its hub in Savar. It has deprived the country of having the certification from the Leather Working Group (LWG), which is a must for exporting leather products to top global brands. Thus, despite having all the ingredients like high-quality raw leather, expertise and cheap workforce for producing world-class finished products, the industry is virtually forced to limit its export earning to around only one-billion dollars. The CETP set up in Dhaka Tannery Industrial Estate in Savar's Hemayetpur has been showing poor performance since its inception in 2021. It does not have the capacity to treat a large volume of waste discharged by the factories.

The global leather-goods market is estimated to grow to $424 billion by 2025 and we have the expertise to take a chunk of it if the compliance issue can be solved. Moreover, tannery solid waste is valuable if it could be processed. The waste of leather could be used in furniture industry and protein enzyme could be produced for further use in tannery. If we can manage solid waste properly, it could be valuable and save the environment too.

Sirazi Shahjahan,

Malibagh, Dhaka,

mshaju001@gmail.com