Murshedy demands separate ministry for apparel sector
FE Report | Saturday, 26 March 2011
FE Report
Outgoing BGMEA president Abdus Salam Murshedy demanded Thursday a separate ministry for the garment sector in an effort to cut red-tape affecting the country's largest industrial sector. Murshedy said garment exports from Bangladesh could lose competitive advantages and investment might be slowed if the government fails to cut time-consuming bureaucratic paperworks. "We waste some of our precious time shunting between different government offices just to expedite paperworks relating to shipment, investment and utilities," he told reporters. "We need a separate ministry exclusively for garment industry. We are the largest industry, accounting for some 80 per cent of the country's exports. We deserve special attention," he said. Murshedy made the demand in his farewell speech as the president of the key industrial grouping. His tenure as the BGMEA president will expire this month. "We need non-stop service for garments sector. It does not look fair that garment manufacturers who have done so much for the nation have to spend hours just to process files in offices," he said. Salam Murshedy said gas and electricity crisis, high lending rate and soaring cotton prices in the international market are the key challenges the apparel makers have been facing for the last two years. He said poor infrastructure meant the manufacturers last year spent at least Tk 20 billion to air-ship their products to meet importers deadline. "We had to use air route despite air-fair is about 76 per cent costlier than sea cargoes," he said, adding mismanagement at the Chittagong Port also cost the manufacturers a loss of Tk 900 million. The outgoing president said deteriorating energy crisis has spiked production cost by at least 45 per cent in the local garment factories. "A lot of manufacturers now use diesel and furnace oil-run generators, which are extremely costly. The energy crisis cost us Tk 40 billion alone last year," he said. Murshedy who is going to hand-over charge to newly elected president Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said garment factories need 620 megawatt of power a day for smooth production. "But we get only 406mw," he added. "A lot of apparel factories depend on furnace oil. But the government has recently increased furnace oil price, spiking our manufacturing cost," he said and urged the authorities to bring down production cost. Last year earnings from garment export grew at a decent four per cent to $13.5 billion, making up nearly 80 per cent of the country's total export.
Outgoing BGMEA president Abdus Salam Murshedy demanded Thursday a separate ministry for the garment sector in an effort to cut red-tape affecting the country's largest industrial sector. Murshedy said garment exports from Bangladesh could lose competitive advantages and investment might be slowed if the government fails to cut time-consuming bureaucratic paperworks. "We waste some of our precious time shunting between different government offices just to expedite paperworks relating to shipment, investment and utilities," he told reporters. "We need a separate ministry exclusively for garment industry. We are the largest industry, accounting for some 80 per cent of the country's exports. We deserve special attention," he said. Murshedy made the demand in his farewell speech as the president of the key industrial grouping. His tenure as the BGMEA president will expire this month. "We need non-stop service for garments sector. It does not look fair that garment manufacturers who have done so much for the nation have to spend hours just to process files in offices," he said. Salam Murshedy said gas and electricity crisis, high lending rate and soaring cotton prices in the international market are the key challenges the apparel makers have been facing for the last two years. He said poor infrastructure meant the manufacturers last year spent at least Tk 20 billion to air-ship their products to meet importers deadline. "We had to use air route despite air-fair is about 76 per cent costlier than sea cargoes," he said, adding mismanagement at the Chittagong Port also cost the manufacturers a loss of Tk 900 million. The outgoing president said deteriorating energy crisis has spiked production cost by at least 45 per cent in the local garment factories. "A lot of manufacturers now use diesel and furnace oil-run generators, which are extremely costly. The energy crisis cost us Tk 40 billion alone last year," he said. Murshedy who is going to hand-over charge to newly elected president Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said garment factories need 620 megawatt of power a day for smooth production. "But we get only 406mw," he added. "A lot of apparel factories depend on furnace oil. But the government has recently increased furnace oil price, spiking our manufacturing cost," he said and urged the authorities to bring down production cost. Last year earnings from garment export grew at a decent four per cent to $13.5 billion, making up nearly 80 per cent of the country's total export.