RMG makers will invest Tk 50b to fulfil compliances to boost export

Shah Alam Nur Country's readymade garment (RMG) industry is going to invest Tk 50 billion for fulfilling the compliances in the factories to boost export, sector insiders said. They also said the sector is now under pressure from international buyers and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) who are closely monitoring the working conditions in RMG units. For fulfilling the buyers' requirement, nearly 500 garment owners have agreed to invest the amount. "We have no alternative but to improve the compliance and for that reason new investment is needed," President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Atiqul Islam told the FE. He said after the Rana Plaza tragedy compliances including the working condition, wages, fire and disaster safety measures in the factories and maintaining building codes have become the main concerns of the RMG buyers. Mr Islam, also Managing Director of Islam Garments Ltd said his factory always maintains compliances but he wants to go for new investment for further improvement of his factory. Managing Director of Envoy Group Abdus Salam Murshedi said his company is going to invest Tk 1.00 billion in this regard. He said: "My Company presently meets most of the compliances, but I'm ready to make its standard like many countries of the west". Workers' safety system, fire-fighting equipment, evacuation mechanism, proper installation of machines and healthy work environment are among the social compliance issues. Managing Director of Eastern Apparels Ltd Nasir Uddin Chowdhury said they have decided to invest Tk 20 million for ensuring much better working condition at one of its factories. "We've already made investment on compliance issue. Hopefully, we'll ensre more facilities for our workers within the stipulated time," he said. He said that garment makers are now compelled to seriously look into the safety issues for their survival. Former president of BGMEA Anwar ul Alam Chowdhury Parvez told the FE that many of the RMG factories are in operation in rented houses where they face space constraint; the factories cannot fulfil compliances fully. He said a big number of factories outside Dhaka and Chittagong are working in a minimum space in rented houses for which those entrepreneurs fail to meet compliances. After Tazreen and Savar tragedies the factory owners are trying to introduce compliance following constant pressure from home and abroad. According to the BGMEA Research Cell, nearly 1,830 garment workers died so far in different building-collapses, fires, and other accidents from the 1990 to 2013. The major incidents were Rana Plaza building collapse, the fire incident at Sportswear Limited, owned by Ha-Meem Group and Tazreen Fashions Ltd owned by Tuba Group, Spectrum Sweater Industries, Phoenix Garments, Smart Export Garments, Garib and Garib, Matrix Sweater, KTS Composite Textile Mills and Sun Knitting. Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data showed this year the government has fixed RMG export target at $24.14 billion which was $21.53 billion in the just concluded fiscal year 2012-13. Bangladesh has exported RMG goods worth $ 2.51 billion in the first month of the current fiscal year.