Crises in India, Myanmar diverting export orders to Bangladesh
Myanmar s deepening political crisis and India s grave coronavirus situation are prompting international retailers and brands to divert work orders to Bangladesh because of its stability and milder-than-expected impacts of the second wave of the infections.
After a record spike in Covid-19 caseloads and deaths linked to the virus in recent months, Bangladesh is now witnessing a relatively calm situation than many other countries in the region, including India, thanks to the nationwide partial transport lockdown.
And due to political stability, the country has turned into a safer place for international retailers and brands to produce goods at cheaper rates, keeping the global supply chain unaffected.
Suppliers became unsecured creditors, to be dealt with by administrators FRP Advisory and RSM.
In a letter to Faruque Hassan, president of the BGMEA, sent yesterday (12 May) and seen by Drapers, Herring wrote: “The business and certain assets of those companies have subsequently been sold by the administrators, acquired by new owners. The EWM Group has no shareholding in the company of the new owners and therefore has no control over its day-to-day operations.”
The investment will help shorten lead times and enhance the range offered by the Bangladesh RMG industry
The Bangladesh clothing industry is looking forward to the completion of five state-of-the-art textile factories at the Korean Export Zone (KEPZ) as an important expansion of local backward linkages.
With a combined floor space of 2 million square feet, the factories – three of which are under construction, and two (producing polyester yarn and fabrics) are already open – will produce manmade fibre (MMF) yarn and finished garments.
They will be owned and operated by the South Korea-based Youngone Corporation, which runs the KEPZ located in the south-eastern port of Chattogram.
In recent months, global apparel brands have insisted upon a new framework for the future which discards the key elements that have led to the Accordâs success in making garment factories in Bangladesh safe for workers
UNI Global Union and IndustriAll Global Union, the labour signatories of the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety, have given notice to withdraw from the RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) on 1 June.
The national RSC was set up last year to take over the technical responsibilities of the Accord, whose remit finishes at the end of the month.
While there have been discussions to renegotiate the Accord, nothing has yet been agreed or signed. Unions and industry organisations have been calling on brands to sign a global agreement that will take the work of the Accord into the future and remove any risk of a return to self-monitoring.
And 214 out of 246 factories in Chattogram paid salary to workers, he said.
Besides, 1659 factories in Dhaka and 223 in Chattogram paid the Eid bonus to workers until May 11, the BGMEA chief also said.
Today, 15 factories paid wages for the month of April. Eight apparel factories in Dhaka paid bonus to their workers.
In Chattogram, 32 factories cleared payment to their workers for the month April today. Some 23 gave bonus, Hassan also said.
The BGMEA chief said primarily 800 factories were in trouble and finally, 44 were in a vulnerable position in payment to the workers. We have closely monitored their financial situation and consulted with the banks so that they can get a loan to pay the workers timely. The vulnerable factories have also been paying the workers finally, Hassan said at the press briefing.