Improvement in labour safety necessary to get back US GSP

FE Report Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus said Saturday Bangladesh has to improve certain things, including working conditions and industrial safety, to get back the preferential trade facility in the United States. The US suspended the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) facility for Bangladeshi products in its market on June 27 last. "We could not convince them regarding various issues like labour safety and rights….the suspension is a result of that …. we must fulfill their requirements to get back the GSP," he said while replying to a question. He was speaking at the Social Business Youth Convention 2013 at the Daffodil University in the capital. Dr. Yunus called for building a deep-sea port in the Bay of Bengal and reaping its geographical dividend by providing port facilities to neighbouring countries. "Many neighbouring countries, including Nepal, Myanmar, Bhutan, India and China need Bangladesh's help in their access to the sea," he said adding that Bangladesh could benefit from its suitable geographical location to a great extent, if it allowed the neighbours to use its land. Dr Muhammad Yunus said: "Bangladesh can be richer than Singapore. Singapore allowed other countries to use its land for business purposes." "Bangladesh is at the centre of the region, the leaders of the country must understand its value and move in the right direction," he said. He said the public reaction over the prevailing level of working conditions and industrial safety in Bangladesh discomfited the buyers in the West and that was mainly responsible for the US government suspending the GSP. Asked about his role in reviving the facility, Dr Yunus, a friend to former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, said: "I am not part of the government and hence I have no part to play." "Bangladesh has failed to ensure workers' rights and safety despite being in the garment business for long," he said. He urged the people of the country to protect Grameen Bank as the government was planning to split the bank into several different business units. Dr. Yunus also said: "Bangladesh needs a change in leadership. We need youth leaders for developing the country. There must be new leadership in politics." "Youths have creative minds and they must come forward or we must let them come forward to take the leadership of the country," he said. When asked if he was going to lead the country by joining politics, he said, "no." But he expressed hope that young people would take the place of existing ones. Replying to a student's question on the Grameen Bank's contribution to poverty alleviation, Dr Yunus said Bangladesh achieved the Millennium Development Goal two years ahead of the deadline of 2015. "We can debate on whether Grameen Bank played a role in alleviating poverty or otherwise, but the number of poor has drastically declined in the country," he said. The Nobel Laureate said social business is a cause-driven business where the investors or owners can gradually recover the money invested.