The Way Forward

Report on Readymade Garments Sector of

Bangladesh and its Future Aspect

House no: 314 (2nd & 3rd Floor), Road: 21, New DOHS, Mohakhali, Dhaka - 1206
Phone: 01711 6999 35, 01912 0192 48 E-mail: brandzeal@gmail.com

Abstract
After recent mishaps in readymade garments industry in Bangladesh, Bangladesh
Garment Manufacturer and Exporters Association (BGMEA) have decided to take a
step to overcome the difficulties faced by the industry and also find out the possible
ways to increase productivity, efficiency and empowerment of workers through
sustainable development within the industry. This report is a follow up seminars
conducted in BATEXPO 2013 organized by BGMEA, where industry experts, politicians
and business leaders have shared their outlooks and suggestion for the RMG sector in
coming years.

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Abbreviations

ADB
BGMEA
BIDS
BKMEA
BSR
CEPAA
COC
CSR
EIT
ETP
EU
FDI
FLA
GSP
IFC
ILO
LDC
NGO
PREMA
R&D
UN
WRAP

Asian Development Bank

Bangladesh Garment Manufactures & Exporters Association
Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies
Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association
Business for Social Responsibility
Council on Economic Priorities Accreditation Agency
Code of Conduct
Corporate Social Responsibility
Ethical Trading Initiative
Effluent Treatment Plant
European Union
Foreign Direct Investment
Fair Labor Association
Generalized System of Preferences
International Finance Corporation
International Labor Union
Least Developed Country
Non-Governmental Organizations
Profitable Environmental Management Approach
Research and Development
United Nations
Worldwide Responsible Apparel production

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Contents
Abstract

ii

Abbreviations

iii

Part 1
1
2
3
4

Introduction
Background
Research Topics
Limitations
Scope

5
7
7
8

Part 2

Literature Review
Reinventing the RMG Sector: Building on Social
Accountability and Security
Taking the Sector Forward :The Role of Media in
Sustainable Development
In Search of Eco Friendly & Compliant factory: Pre Condition
to Future Business

1
2
3
Part 3
1
2

Research Methodology
Desk Research
Key Informant Interviews

Part 4

Analysis of Data
Reinventing the RMG Sector: Building on Social
Accountability and Security
Taking the Sector Forward :The Role of Media in
Sustainable Development
In Search of Eco Friendly & Compliant factory: Pre Condition
to Future Business

1
2
3

9
11
12

14
14

15
30
35

Part 5

Conclusion

44

Part 6
1
2

Reference Section
Bibliography
Appendix

45
49

House no: 314 (2nd & 3rd Floor), Road: 21, New DOHS, Mohakhali, Dhaka - 1206
Phone: 01711 6999 35, 01912 0192 48 E-mail: brandzeal@gmail.com

Introduction
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturer and Exporters Association (BGMEA) have been
organizing BATEXPO for past few decades, which promote Bangladeshi readymade
garments (RMG) industry to foreign buyers and clients. However, this years BATEXPO
will be a used as a platform to find solutions to current difficulties the RMG sector is
facing. With a new perspective of being proactive rather than reactive, BGMEA
expected that all the major stakeholders of RMG sector will contribute their thought,
perspective and idea to save this industry from falling apart, saving millions of jobs and
countrys economy from breakdown. In addition, new pathways are also expected to be
originating through discussions for making this industry more efficient, sustainable and
environment friendly through modernization, without overlooking workers safety.

Background
Today, the readymade garment (RMG) sector of Bangladesh is an industry of US$ 21
billion with a workforce of more than 4 million. 80% of workforce is low earning and
poverty affected women, who have got a salvation through this sector for fighting
poverty and making best out of life for them and their family. The industry began its
journey in late 80s of last century and has never looked backward. Though, at first there
were some struggles faced by early entrepreneurs of this sector to achieve orders from
foreign clients and deliver on time by maintaining a standard. But as time passed and
more entrepreneurs entered the industry with a hope of achieving something big, the
industry grew at higher pace and in 2012-13 the number of factories in RMG sector is
around 5600 and this number is expected to grow in coming years as this industry will
flourish more and increase it share in global market. Bangladesh experienced rapid
economic growth through the RMG sector as this industry is the highest foreign
currency earner. In FY2012-2013, the RMG sector contributed almost 79% of gross
national export of Bangladesh and this uprising trend contribution in national export is a
regular scenario for past decades. Through, producing cloths of global standard at
lowest cost this sector has earned Bangladesh recognition and admiration from all
around the world.
The two major strengths, which helped this industry to reach its current stature, are
cheap labour and capacity of production it retain. Global buyers have been always
attracted to this countrys RMG sector due to the quality of product it produce at a
cheaper rate that the global market share of Bangladeshi RMG sector increased
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continuously. This industry not only outclassed its global competitor by its quality of
products but also with the capacity of meeting buyers large demand on time. In current
time, only a handful of countries are able to meet those criteria. With proper
development of skilled workers and increased productivity through upgraded production
facilities, Bangladesh has the potential to become the number one RMG manufacturer
in coming years.
Despite the achievement this industry has brought for the country, there has been
always an issue of workers safety in RMG factories of Bangladesh. In its early days, the
industry faced child labour problem and it was solved through various initiatives but the
safety standards in RMG factories of Bangladesh has been remained a question which
is yet to answer. The industry faced numerous incidents which costs lives and future of
family. Mostly, garments workers belong to poverty affected low earning family where
the worker is the principle earner thus the family was depended on one life. But
devastating incidents in factories have caused families not only lost their loved one but
also their future went blackout. Many initiatives by government and responsible
administration have been taken after such incidents had occurred but they were never
fruitful as soon as the dead bodies of demise were buried, people began to forget what
had happened and what should be done to avoid recurrence of incident alike. Due to
reoccurrence of devastating accidents in RMG workplace, buyers and consumers are
concern about the working condition and also demanding for proper safety compliance
within RMG factories in Bangladesh. These incidents have threatens the very
foundation of this industry and its future existence as foreign buyers are proposing for
moving their order to other RMG industries. Effective measures are needed to be taken
in order to save this industry and this countrys economy.
Considering the fact that Bangladeshi RMG factories are taking proper measures
and initiatives for ensuring workers safety and precaution for any kind of accident, it will
not only help the sector itself to become more transparent and acceptable to foreign
buyers but also help to regain the positive image it has lost through various accidents in
workplace in past decade. In order to do that, all the major stakeholders such as
government, buyers, workers and factory owners are needed to work in a collaborative
manner to find out a fruitful solution so that the industry get achieve a new direction in
which no more life are lost in workplace.

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Research Topics
BGMEA have organized three (3) seminars in this years BATEXPO, focusing on
sustainable development of RMG industry of Bangladesh. The primary goal of
organizing seminars is to find out possible new direction for giving this industry a facelift
to global market as well as becoming more competitive through various environments
friendly and sustainable growth approaches.
1. Reinventing the RMG Sector: Building on Social Accountability and Security.
-

Highlight the need for renewed focus on Social Accountability and Security
Demonstrate how Social accountability is linked with business
performance
Discuss an action plan to take it forward and apply them within the sector
representative

2. Taking the sector forward the role of media in sustainable development.

-

Identifying the core parameters of sustainable development

Highlight the critical role of the sector for the oversell social stability and
economic progress of the country particularly the bottom of the pyramid
Share the progress made, initiatives taken, and way forward plan, Identify
the need for collaboration with media and developing an action plan

3. In Search of Eco Friendly & Compliant factory Pre Condition to future Business.
-

Share the recent updates of all international accords and the changing
approach to work
Share the critical challenges and way forward collaborate plan
Identify ways to address the challenges
Develop an action plan involving all partners

Limitations
The limitations of this report are chiefly concerned with the factor of time and the lack of
availability of relevant research findings pertaining to the Bangladeshi RMG sector. It
can fairly be said that for an extensive secondary research, as of the kind of this report,
a fairly longer time allowing greater and minute analysis of secondary resources is very
much essential. Nonetheless, this report has attempted with much viability to overcome
this limitation.
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On the other hand, the lack of research findings and secondary resources pertaining
exclusively to the RMG sector of Bangladesh has been major limitation to the
preparation of this report. The analyses of secondary resources that have been done for
the purpose of this report consisted of theoretical frameworks germane to the RMG
sector in general. Furthermore, the secondary resources by majority contained research
findings regarding the various subjective essences of the topics addressed by the
BATEXPO Seminar 2013. The report herein thus attempted to overcome this limitation
by the synthesis and symbiosis of the subjective research findings of the secondary
resources that were obtained and the insights provided by the speakers on the topics in
the seminar. Although research findings exclusive to the RMG sector of Bangladesh
were quite unavailable, newspaper articles and other such materials provided quite
some assistance in overcoming the limitation.
The other limitation that this report is subjected to is that the authors were not
exposed to the insight of the representatives of all the stakeholders of the RMG sector
of Bangladesh. The seminar without doubt did give a platform to various people from
the large community of stakeholders of the RMG sector of Bangladesh. However, many
representatives were not present in certain topics discussed where their presence
would have broadened the horizon of insights and thus enhanced this report
qualitatively.

Scope
This report can be utilized as a reference for further research upon the RMG sector of
Bangladesh. Taking the note of limitations of this report it is known a priori that very little
research is available, thus done, on the RMG sector of Bangladesh. Therefore, any
research work that is intended to be done upon the Bangladeshi RMG sector in the long
run might benefit from the analyses done in this report.
Other than that this report might be useful in understanding the current trend and
initiatives that are in limelight in the RMG sector of Bangladesh. The manufacturers and
other stakeholders of the sector both in Bangladesh and beyond may get significant
insights sketched out in this report. The report might be useful in understanding the pros
and cons of various industrial practices and the views of scholars and academicians
regarding them.
Furthermore, the report might be of assistance in developing strategies by
manufacturers addressing labor issues and buyer aspects. Thus, the position enjoyed
by the RMG sector of Bangladesh might be strengthened or enhanced. All these may
encourage further research works to be undertaken focusing on particular aspects of
the sector.
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Literature Review
Bangladesh has emerged as a key player in Readymade Garment sector since
1978. A resource of inexpensive labour force and large capacity of production backed
the speedy development of the readymade garments (RMG) sector in Bangladesh. The
hard work of millions of employees has likewise contributed in constructing the apparels
as the utmost export recipient of the nation. The sector currently employs approximately
four (4) million workers, mostly females from underprivileged social classes. Quality of
goods exported from Bangladesh has always been questioned by the foreign buyers
due to lack of experience and awareness of Garment manufacturers associated in the
trade.
In order to export readymade garments, it is not only the quality parameters which
are important towards acceptance of the product as per the intended end use, but also
the working environment in which the garments are to be produced, is equally important
so that sweatshop concept is totally taken care of and the code of conduct must be
stretched towards achieving the objectives of social compliance issues. The labor
atmosphere of the apparel businesses is not safe, pleasant and vigorous for the
employees, particularly for the women employees. Several of the problems of factory
employees are connected to the social setting of the workroom. The core areas of social
accountability are, basically, based on the principles of international human rights, local
culture and tradition. The prime objective of the system is to protect the human rights in
ready-made garment industries.

Reinventing the RMG Sector: Building on Social Accountability

and Security
i.

Social Accountability, a prime issue in the current RMG industry

In todays fast changing global market, it is not only the quality of garments which
cherished the retailers and manufacturers but also the working environments of
the organization wherein the products were produced. Those are equally
important to gain and strengthen consumer confidence and to build-up more
reliable relationships with vendors. In other words, specific code of conduct that
protects the basic human rights of the workforce engaged in the trade is to be
respected to satisfy consumers and to add social value to the product. In order to
do so, the reputed and leading market players in the garment trade have
imposed compulsion on the related factories to achieve those objectives as a
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condition of the export contract. Even the exports were either withheld or
cancelled elsewhere in the event of noncompliance to such issues.
ii.

Code of Conduct (COC), emerging as the must to-be followed rule book.
Social Accountability standards have been developed by the international
organizations such as Fair Labor Association (FLA), Worldwide Responsible
Apparel production (WRAP), Council on Economic Priorities Accreditation
Agency (CEPAA), The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and Business for Social
Responsibility (BSR). Reputed brand buyers in large supply chain have taken the
guideline from those organizations and formulated their own standard of COC
and also the acceptance criteria. The basic principles of COC have been derived
from the principles of international human rights norms as delineated in
International Labor Organization Conventions, the United Nations (UN)
convention on the Rights of the Child and the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights.
It has nine core areas to be addressed upon:1. Child labor
2. Forced labor
It is indeed a shame that even after one
hundred years of the triangle shirtwaist incident;
3. Health and safety
tragedies in the Bangladesh garments industry
4. Compensation
occur with scant media attention other than the
5. Working hours
possible effect of such disasters on corporate
6. Discrimination
business operations.-Jay Causey
7. Discipline
8. Free association and collective bargaining
9. Management systems
While following the above criteria is compulsory for satisfying COC, local culture
and regulation of Govt. cannot be overlooked. For instance, limit of working hours
and compensation for extra work may not be the same for all geographical zones
in the globe. Minimum basic wage also depends on the economic situation of a
particular country in question. The introduction of rights of free association and
collective bargaining is guided by the political environment, the maturity level of
workforce and above all the basic training of the management of the
organization.

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Taking the Sector Forward: The Role of Media in Sustainable

Development
i.

Critical role of the media to ensure social stability & economic progress
In recent times, extensive media coverage on the Tazreen fire or the Rana Plaza
collapse just emphasizes the role both print and electronic media plays in
molding public opinion towards mass safety reforms and gaining attention of the
concerned authorities. However, in the context of an economically challenged
nation like ours, we can hardly afford drama on our media reports rather than
actual facts served with discretion and keeping the national interest above
anything else. Media definitely are expected to be the watchdog against violation
of human rights, but ensuring that their remarks are based on national interest
and good judgment is critical for the sustainable development of our RMG in the
global market.

ii.

Need for engaging the media in discussion & developing an action plan
Action Plan very recently on its 10-point RMG roadmap post Rana Plaza
Tragedy perfectly summed up the need for tripartite consultation (government,
private sector and civil society) & emphasized the importance of media
participation in bringing qualitative changes in the RMG sector from the grass
root level. The media as a 3rd party plays a vital role in putting pressure on the
owners, government agencies and other stakeholders to act swiftly and
responsively in order to ensure prevention of accidents & malpractices within the
RMG sector.

iii.

Progress, Initiatives and measures

The mass media previously played a major role in reaching the RMG workers
regarding HIV/AIDS and awareness about preventive measures such as
condoms through the broadcast of drama on television, radio programs, public
service announcements, mobile SMS, short documentaries. Thus the ability of
this sector to reach the bottom of the pyramid population can be very effective in
implementing any action plan for our RMG. BGMEA and BKMEA have had
several discussions with the media post Rana Plaza tragedy to exchange their
views and ideas. Besides, media working as an independent pressure group
have arranged policy dialogues from time to time (e.x. Prothom Alo round table

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dialogue) with the related stakeholders for the qualitative development of the
RMG sector.
iv.

Looking forward:
By becoming more responsible & neutral in expressing their opinions to the
public, our media can certainly play a huge role in ensuring the sustainable
development of RMG through effective participation in policy dialogues and
constant engagement with the bottom of the pyramid population of Bangladesh.

In Search of Eco Friendly & Compliant factory: Pre Condition to

Future Business
This year, the RMG sector of Bangladesh has seen some major movements and
reforms following two tragic incidents: Tazreen fire and Savar building collapse. These
two incidents brought the garments industry to limelight and it was subject to global
scrutinization. However, the most highlighted issues have been maintenance of the
global standard and compliance issues. In the light of the recent global recession,
Bangladesh is seen to lose its only competitive edge, cheap labour, as it is being
overshadowed by other pressing issues. Among them, low productivity, inconsistent
compliance with national social legislation, environmentally damaging practices, and
limited export market portfolio threaten the future of the sector.
i.

Current measures
Audit by BGMEA: Due to global pressures, audit regarding factory environment
is being taken place in all the garments factory of Bangladesh by BGMEA.
Thought the audit is giving green cards to prominent first tiered producers, many
subcontracting firms and third tiered firms are being forced to close down due to
lack of environment friendly work environment and compliance issues.
Setting up of safety funds: In light of the imposition of recent safety measures,
the buyers are willing to set up a safety fund. These safety funds will be directed
towards the improvement of factory conditions in factories finding them too costly
to implement.
Bangladesh factory safety accord: This agreement demands a five-year
commitment from participating retailers to conduct independent safety
inspections of factories and pay up to $500,000 per year toward safety
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improvements. Major European retailers -- for example, Marks & Spencer and
Carrefour -- have joined the agreement. Others who've signed on include
companies recently involved with factory disasters in Bangladesh, such as
Swedish retailer H&M and Italian fashion house Benetton. However, that leaves
plenty of U.S. retailers absent from the agreement, according to the Worker
Rights Consortium, an international labor monitoring group.
ii.

Landmarks of green technology

1. ETP implemented in all the first tiered garments factory having a washing
section.
2. Profitable Environmental Management Approach (PREMA) incorporated in
factories which improve factories' chemical management with positive effects
on health, safety, the environment and efficient use of chemicals leading to
cost savings and increased productivity.
3. Endorsements of International environmental standards such as ISO 14001
by factories to enhance the capacity of environmental auditors in the country.
4. Viyallatex, a market leader, is also winning worldwide accolades for its
commitment to green industry and sustainability. Their first sustainable
initiative was all about steam. Releasing steam from factories was a waste of
energy. They used the steam to generate treated affluent water. The result is
pre-heated water, free of charge.

5. Vertex RMG division of Vertex group is also actively taking part in reducing
carbon footprint. They are using the gas and heat emitted from boilers to
harness electricity and run their factories.
Review and

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Research Methodology
A set of qualitative research methodologies will be used to conduct the study that
include:
Desk research
Key Informant Interviews

Desk Research
The secondary sources of information are mostly journals, articles and reports
published by BGMEA, BIDS and other relevant organizations. International references
like that of the McKinsey report on global competitiveness of RMG sector and Triple
triangle framework will be used to get a holistic view of the best practices of this sector.
The literature review section of the research paper was based on these secondary
sources of information. Reports from different websites and articles are used for the
overall understanding of the core research problem and the research questions.
Desk research has been conducted to find out: Preliminary results against the key research questions
The best practices for labor safety followed worldwide and in Bangladesh
Initiatives taken by the various stakeholders for development of the sector
Existing gaps in the policy arena

Key Informant Interviews

A semi structured questionnaire for conducting Key Informant interviews will be
developed. These stakeholders would help us get an understanding the policy problems
regarding labor safety and compliant measures, problems the industry faces in the
export market and develop an overall idea about the strategies and guidelines required
to enhance brand image of Bangladesh that faced a severe fallback after losing GSP
facilities.

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Analysis of Data
Reinventing the RMG Sector: Building on Social Accountability
and Security
In present time, the RMG sector of Bangladesh is just behind china among the rank of
global RMG product manufacturing countries and According to McKinsey report in 2011,
Bangladesh was the second largest RMG manufacturer after China and the report
suggests that within five years Bangladesh will become the largest RMG manufacturer
in the world. (Achim Berg, 2011)
According to Asian Development Bank (ADB), Bangladeshs share of the global
garment market has been growing. It is the second-largest exporter to the European
Union, with a 12.0% market share in FY2012, when exports surged by 21.6%,
substantially benefiting from a change in Generalized System of Preferences rules of
origin that became effective in January 2011. Bangladesh also had a significant 4.6%
share of the US market. Exports of high-end garments are rising, and garment sales to
Australia, Canada, the Peoples Republic of China, India, Japan, Turkey, and other
emerging markets in Asia and South America are expanding briskly (Asian
Development Bank, 2013)
Thus, The RMG sector has every possibility to become the leading manufacturer in
global market as numbers suggests. China has lost a bit of market share in the EU in
Q3 of 2012 as china's prices increased over the quarter to an extent of 14.76 percent
than prices of Turkish (+3.65 percent) or Bangladeshi (+2.71 percent) origins. (Huq,
Perception versus reality check, 2013). Export to traditional markets in Europe, the
sector has witnessed a huge surge in exports to Germany with US$ 3.3 billion, to UK
with $2.23 billion, and to Spain with $ 1.06 billion between July 2012 -May 2013 as
William Hanna1 notified in the BATEXPO seminar European union (EU) provides the
most favorable terms to Bangladesh in terms of RMG export and this can be exploited
by other industrialists from other sectors of the country. To non-traditional markets like
Australia, Japan and Turkey, the export figures in the same period stand at $ 392, $ 437
and $ 362 million respectively (Huq, The Battles of RMG, 2013) .
The RMG sector has contributed 79.63 percent to total export for the FY 2012-2013.
During this time, the RMG sector exported an amount of $ 21.51 billion to global market.
This sector has always outperformed other sectors in Bangladeshi economy with
1

Ambassador, Head of the Delegation of the EU to Bangladesh

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continuous growth and made major contribution towards countrys economy. (BGMEA,
2013). The export trend of RMG sector has always been positive since its creation and
particularly last five years have been outstanding. The sectors annual export growth
rate was 16.252 percent during last five year.
Though, the sector has perform immensely well with consistency, it has numerous
challenges to overcome in order to maintain its position in global market. The major
three challenges faced by the RMG sector in present time are:-

Fire Safety
According to the Bangladesh Institute of Labor Studies, 431 workers died
in 14 major fire incidents between 1990 and 2012. However, according to
Bangladesh Fire Department, 414 garment workers were killed in 213
factory fires between 2006 and 2009 alone. (Tazreen & Sabet, 2013)

Different Tax Treatment Compared to Other Sectors

The garments industry pays 0.8% tax whereas corporate tax for other
sectors is 40%. This is a blatant misrepresentation of facts and a clear
example of negative media bias towards the garment owners. Garments
exporters pay 0.8% tax at source on gross export, regardless of profit or
loss. With industry average profit margins of less than 5%, that translates
to 20% tax on profit, even though the corporate tax rate for garments is
10%. The government does not refund this excess tax, even if they claim
a loss. (Chowdhury, 2013)

Risk of Losing GSP Facilities

The European Parliament has threatened to withdraw generalized system
of preference (GSP), the duty and quota-free access to EU market that
Bangladesh enjoys. (bdnews24.com, 2013)

Minimum Wage Issue

Workers and owners are at loggerheads over the issue of implementation
of minimum wage in the country's readymade garment (RMG) sector.
Garment workers are staging demonstrations, holding rallies and shutting
down several hundred RMG factories at Ashulia and Savar to press home
their demand for a minimum wage of Tk. 8,114 a month. (The
Independent, 2013)

Geometric mean of Annual Export of RMG sector between FY 2008-09 and 2012-13

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Underpaid By Buyers
Seminar discussants stated that the problems created in the RMG sector
are not solely due to the manufacturers and labor leaders of the country.
The international buyers are at times responsible in terms of paying lower
prices and thus keeping the RMG sector of Bangladesh underpaid for a
long time.

But this particular sector experienced two colossal setbacks in a matter of six
months and it needs to react before any more incidents alike occur again. The
prevention of such incidents can be begun with a reformation of policies. The
reformation can be started based on social accountability and securities. As it is an
important aspect behind ensuring the safety of workers in RMG factories. It will not only
provide them a healthy and friendly working environment but also will provide security to
workers life. According to Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) half of
RMG factories in Bangladesh are risky for non-compliance (The Daily New Age, 2013)

Defining Social Accountability

There is no unified definition of social accountability and security as people have
different perspective and definition regarding this subject but the following definition
reflects all the prospects of social accountability and security within an organization:
Social Accountability is the measure of an organizations state of being mindful of
the emerging social concerns of internal & external stakeholders (community,
employees, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, management, and
owners). It is reflected in the organizations verifiable commitment to certain factors
(Council for leather export)
(1) Willing compliance with employment, health and hygiene, safety, and
environment laws
(2) Respect for basic civil & human rights
(3) Betterment of community and surroundings
Thus, we can understand that social accountability ensures that responsibility of an
organization should not be limited within their operational activity as they are also
responsible for the betterment of overall society.

Page | 17

Reason behind the Need Social Accountability and Security

After recent events, social accountability is turning more into a necessity for RMG
sector. Organizations can get compliance with different standards in order to ensure the
practice of social accountability.
SA8000 standard is one of the most practiced social accountability standard. It is
one of the worlds first auditable social certification standards for decent workplaces,
across all industrial sectors. It is based on conventions of the ILO, UN and national law,
and spans industry and corporate codes to create a common language to measure
social compliance. Below we have discussed the nine (9) elements of SA8000 standard,
which reflects the need of social accountability within organizations (Social
Accountability International, 2008):1. Child Labor - No use of child labor.
2. Forced and Compulsory Labor - No use or support for forced or compulsory
labor.

3. Health and Safety- Provide a safe and healthy workplace.

4. Freedom of Association and Rights - Respect the right to form and join trade
unions and bargain collectively.
5. Discrimination- No dissemination based on race, national or social origin,
case, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, union membership,
political opinions and age.
6. Disciplinary Practices- Treat all personnel with dignity and respect.

7. Working hours- Compliance with laws and industry standards

8. Remuneration- Respect right of personal to living wage.
9. Management Systems- Facilities seeking to gain and maintain certification
must go beyond simple compliance to integrate the standard into their
management systems and practices.

In addition to that, compliance can also be achieved by following the laws of the
country. Apart from following the law, a factory must have BGMEA membership, factory
Page | 18

license, trade license, fire license, Incorporation certificate, bond license, ERC, IRC, Vat
registration, etc. The areas of compliance include working hours, minimum working age,
health and safety, environment, discrimination, forced labor, wages and benefits,
freedom of association, international trade requirements, harassment and abuse, And
security standards. (Huq, Suspension and speculations, 2013)

Benefits and Costs of Social Accountability and Security

Presence of social accountability and security can have mix impacts on the industry. It
does give a possibility of improvement of industries operational efficiency, output and
productivity but it can also negatively affects other variables linked to the industry. We
have mentioned possible benefits and costs of practicing social accountability and
security in an industry:A. Benefits
1. Improves employee productivity.
Fakir Apparels Ltd. firmly believes that operating in a responsible and ethical
way is essential for the success of the business. Consequently, success
followed their responsible way of doing business. The various benefits
workers receive at Fakir Apparels motivate them to stay longer and work
positively, which in turn results in higher productivity, reduced cost of
recruitment and corporate sustainability. (Social and Environmental
Excellence Award , 2012)
2. Firms reputation and brand value enhances.
Hamza Textiles is recognized by IFC, World Bank, GIZ and buyers like H&M,
Puma, GStar as an energy efficient factory having good environment
management system. This enhanced image has helped the company bag
good orders. It is the first company in Bangladesh which has exported fabrics
to Marks & Spencer supplier in Indonesia. Moreover, financial\ savings on
account of reduction in waste generation has helped the organization to be
financially stronger. Also, the company has been able to achieve ISO
14001:2004 Environment Management System certification for its practices.
(Social and Environmental Excellence Award , 2012)

Page | 19

3. Help to build long-term business relationship with clients.

The social compliance initiatives have helped in portraying a positive image of
VTL in the international community which in turn helps in generating a higher
sales turnover and also in reaching newer markets and regions. Also, the
initiatives have helped in instilling a simplified business process and enriched
quality standards that aids in achieving greater customer satisfaction (Social
and Environmental Excellence Award , 2012)
4. Operational activity becomes more efficient.
Grameen Kintwear Ltd. started to dye the fabric with Water Saving
Technology; it has reaped a lot of benefits. Owing to this technology,
production has increased while production cost has gone down. Steam and
power consumption and Carbon Dioxide emission per KG has gone down
drastically. Moreover, Grameen knitwear Ltd started their work W.S.T
technology from the middle of July 2012 with 2 Cotton Fabrication & 1 CVC
Fabrication Garments order. After successful implementation of Water Saving
technology, it got more orders with the same requirement. The organizations
forecasted savings by using this technology in running orders are: 15144435
liter water, 115638 KWH power, and 26598 kg Carbon Dioxide & 1486769 Kg
steam. The savings of 15144435 liter of water can fulfill the demand of fresh
drinking water for 20,475 people for one year! Besides, the new technology is
able to save USD 0.66/kg of fabric. (Social and Environmental Excellence
Award , 2012)

B. Costs
1. Irrational Expectation
Social accountability is possible when citizens (workers) are aware of their
rights and expect. Care must be taken to ensure that those expectations are
realistic and reasonable. (World Bank)
2. Risk of conflict.
In seeking accountability, there is always the risk of conflict or adversarial
attitudes. One of the key precepts of social accountability approaches is to
promote constructive approaches that go beyond making accusations or
lodging complaints to seeking collective solutions. (World Bank)

Benefits caused by social accountability and security outweigh costs in many ways.
Social accountability might cause few problems for the company practicing this concept
Page | 20

but with proper communication with stakeholders such difficulties are expected to be
solved.

Linking Social Accountability and Business Performance

Economic Impact of RMG on Bangladesh
The economic growth of Bangladesh is decent if not recommendable- with a satisfactory
rate of 6.7% over the last year ( (Sanyal & Murshid, 2013)). Undoubtedly the RMG
(Ready Made Garments) sector has a huge role to play in this steady growth. The RMG
sector in Bangladesh has grown by 2012 with its more than 5,420 units creating direct
jobs for more than 6 million people, 85% women, and positioning Bangladesh as the 2 nd
largest apparel manufacturer in the world by volume and the 3 rd largest manufacturer in
terms of (Social and Environmental Excellence Award , 2012)

Total RMG Export Vs Participation in National

Economy
90
80

79.33

77.12

78.15

78.6

79.63

17.91

19.09

21.52

2010-11

2011-12

2012-13

70
60
50
40
30
20

12.35

12.5

2008-09

2009-10

10
0
Total RMG Export (in $ Billion)

% of National Export

Source (BGMEA, 2013)

Social Accountability for Sustainable Development

Social accountability might be simply defined as the obligation of power-holders to take
responsibility for their actions and it illustrates the rights and responsibilities that exist
between the people and the institutions that have an impact on their lives (UNDP, 2010)

Page | 21

In the context of the RMG sector of Bangladesh the workers in the sector are the
ones to whom social accountability is directed to and the owners in the sector are the
ones who are socially accountable. Social accountability is needed in this sector
fundamentally to achieve a sustainable development in the RMG sector and to promote
brand value of Bangladesh to the rest of the world (Social and Environmental
Excellence Award , 2012)
It is known a priori that social accountability is needed in the RMG sector of
Bangladesh for its sustainable development. Sustainable development is conventionally
defined as the development that meets the needs of the present generation without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WCED, 1987).
A socially accountable enterprise may yield a lot of benefits for itself and contribute
to the society in return. Development of new products, improvements in efficiency and
new methods of marketing and reconfiguration might be developed by being an
environmentally responsible business (Khare, 2003).
Tube lights were replaced with transparent
glass rectangles. These glass plates enable
sunlight to come through the roof and light up
the production floor.
This measure has saved 65% of previous
energy costs.

The ETP of the company is physio chemical

and biological. It runs 24 hours and produces
pollutant free water after the full processing is
complete.
The inverter technology has reduced the
energy use of the motors from 37.5 KwH to
just 15 KwH.

Sustainable development beneftis experienced by

Metro Knitting & Dyeing Mills Limited

The generator heat capture and subsequent

use in other machines like boilers saves the
company BDT 25,000 per hour.

The factory runs on DC power,This change of

power structure saved 75% of their energy
costs, lowering their consumption from 217
KwH to 65 KwH.
In total, the company saves BDT 3.5 crore
each year due to these ecofriendly.

Source- (Bangladesh Brand Forum, 2013)

Page | 22

Impact on Environment and Society by Practicing Social Accountability

The practice of being environmentally conscious while undertaking business activities is
also inherent to social accountability. Social compliance requirements for the RMG
industry connote minimum labor standards, occupational health and safety measures
and environmental concerns (Social and Environmental Excellence Award , 2012)
Social compliance in the RMG sector may ease the fulfillment of Millenniums
Development Goals in terms of womens empowerment and poverty alleviation. The
RMG sector in Bangladesh, as mentioned earlier, employs women mostly from
underprivileged strata of the society as 85% of its total workforce. A greater social
accountability would mean more enhancement and liberty in the lives of these workers.
Companies in the RMG sector in Bangladesh that have excelled in social and
environmental practices have been successful in impressing foreign buyers, Thus, such
companies have succeeded in grasping good number of orders from big buyers. This
has been possible due to their social accountability. Inversely, not being socially
accountable discourages foreign buyers from ordering to the companies. It is no wonder
that it is a matter of concern for the whole nation regarding the RMG sector in postRana Plaza catastrophe period. Thus social accountability has an intense link between
the performance of the business both in terms of operation and revenue.

Saiham Knit Composite Ltd has proper

ventilation and provision of high quality
personal protective equipment for workers
who need them.
This practice has resulted in satisfaction
among its employees and reduced their
health risk substantially..

Initiative
Factories

Taken

Hamza textiles Ltd has been able to

increase its production and reduce carbon
dioxide emissions. Fabric production in 2011
was 7.25% higher compared to 2010.CO2
emission has decreased by 28% and
electricity consumption went down by 17.15%.

Fakir Apparels has reduced energy cost by

50%
and
by
introducing
greener
environmental concept, energy costs have
been reduced by further 20 to 25%. the
company enjoys better productivity, lower
cost, higher energy saving, greener
environment & environmental sustainability

by

Different

CSR activities and good working environment

at Aboni knitwear ltd, attracts plenty of good
workers and minimizes employee turnover
rate.
Being compliant with local/international law
and the buyers code of conduct helps the
company to get more orders from valued
foreign buyers.

Source- (Bangladesh Brand Forum, 2013)

Page | 23

Suggested Strategies for RMG Sector

RMG industry of Bangladesh is having a tough time to maintain its positive image
towards its consumers and clients. It is high time to rethink the policies and guidelines,
which will lead this industry out of the crisis it is facing currently due to numerous
accidents in recent times. We have suggested few possible actions, which could be
taken in order to establish the practice of social accountability in RMG industry
organizations.

Administrative Strategies

1. The government should take broad initiative to bring Bangladesh into

compliance with international workplace standards. (Peters, 2013)
2. BGMEA scrutinizing the factories, classifying them into three tiers basing on
the level of the compliance of the factory. (Huq, The RMG BRIDGE: The
ultimate test of our conscience, 2013)
3. Factories can evaluate the workers based on their performance and
accordingly wages could be fixed upon successful completion of their
courses. (Huq, The RMG BRIDGE: The ultimate test of our conscience, 2013)
4. Classify factories based on their working conditions including the wages
owners provide, so that there is transparency for both workers and buyers,
regarding what they can and cannot expect from a factory with an associated
grade. (Murshid & Sanyal, 2013)
5. A worker often needs quick access to credit. If under the BRIDGE3 scheme,
the manufacturers decided to deposit all the 'jhut' money to a workers' welfare
fund, then that would at least display a gesture of goodwill. (Huq, The RMG
BRIDGE: The ultimate test of our conscience, 2013)
6. Productivity and skill development programs can be conduct by factories.
(Huq, The RMG BRIDGE: The ultimate test of our conscience, 2013)
7. Implant the idea of efficiency in business owners, instead of focusing on
wages, as a one-way road to lower costs. (Murshid & Sanyal, 2013)

BRIDGE is a concept of reducing the communication gap between RMG owners and workers through various initiatives for the betterment of
the industry.

Page | 24

8. Owners need to be aware that workers have many needs, one of which is
economic. As a global player, the RMG sector has to start incorporating
elements of the corporate world that they serve such as health insurance,
education benefits, and paid holidays for their workers. (Murshid & Sanyal,
2013)

Safety Strategies
1. The garment manufacturers association and the retailers should conduct a
campaign to educate workers about safety standards and ensure
whistleblower protections so that violations can be reported without
reprisals. (Peters, 2013)
2. Reputable Bangladeshi textile firms, represented by the BGMEA need to set
and enforce credible safety and workplace standards. (Peters, 2013)

3. BGMEA must kindly classify factories immediately and label them as Tier 1,
Tier 2 and Tier 3. (Huq, The bare minimum of RMG, 2013)
4. Disallow members of BGMEA using shared buildings (Huq, Moving forward
from the tragedy , 2013)
5. Engage with retailers to set up a specialized rehabilitation unit for the
survivors of accidents. (Huq, Moving forward from the tragedy , 2013)
6. Audit production units in three phases, beginning with the riskiest, followed by
riskier and risky; (Huq, Moving forward from the tragedy , 2013)
7. Appoint lobbyists to do some damage control and help secure the future of
the 4m workers in the industry. (Huq, Moving forward from the tragedy , 2013)

Miscellaneous Strategies4
1. Ensuring political stable environment
2. Security on garments products.

Suggested by RMG owners through interviews.

Page | 25

3. Improve port delivery services and Bottlenecked areas.

4. Transportation facilities should be improved.
BGMEA have already undertaken required steps in order to recover the reputation of
Bangladeshi RMG sector in global market. Buyers and international organizations have
offered their aid and necessary assistant in order to retrieve this industry from the
negative image crisis it is currently facing. Thus, it is necessary for taking further step
without wasting more time to invent this industry again with a touch of social
accountability and security for the welfare of all the stakeholders of the society and
industry.
Apart from the information mentioned above participants discussed various thoughts
and suggestions for taking the industry away from current problems The keynote
speaker of this seminar, Rubana Huq, the managing director of Mohammadi group
suggested additional strategies and initiative which see believes will take this sector
way ahead of other competitors. She discussed following strategies:1. Sincerely allow functioning trade union or an elected workers participatory
committee.
2. Establish a welfare trust could very well be set up with the brands paying 1%
of the FOB price and the manufacturers paying 1% of their value addition.

3. Set up schools. A school of 100 children costs not more than 70000 Taka.
4. Encourage each leading exporter to mentor and monitor at least 5 tier 3
factories.
5. To set up a 25-bed hospital if it exports more than 30 million dollars a year.
6. Set up workers training center for improved productivity and skill.
7. Random audits are welcome, but overlapping is not appreciated.
8. Brands must work along with the National Action Plan Committee to ensure
and endorse one uniform industry standard.
9. We must not skirt around substantive issues, and play the blame game. We
cannot depend on others to take the lead, we need to be proactive.

Page | 26

10. Workers, like owners, have evolving aspirations. We must work with them to
reach those goals.
11. We must streamline our actions and act in a coordinated manner and stop
being defensive.
12. Consider low cost housing for workers by exporters exporting more than 20
million dollars.
Breakdown of low cost housing
Size
Dorm (upto 4 persons)
Quantity
100 sq. ft.
Total
Cost
of
Construction
350
@ BDT 800 per sq. ft.
Size
BDT 28 million

Family
150 sq. ft.
150
BDT 18 million

Brig. Gen. Ali Ahmed Khan, PSC, Director General, Fire Service and Civil Defense
Directorate stated that they are working with the ILO for the input the fire safety and
safe working environment. As maximum fire accidents are occurred by electrical issue
and the owners, BGMEA and stakeholders are serious and taking active part to improve
their capacity, improve their shortcoming as you know that we are also caring out
moderating team from cavil service defense and this team is working round the clock
with the workers, stakeholders and how best we improve our selves. I think the time is
given short 3- 4 months nothing can improve I think. It must understand the reality the
time has to be increase.
Dr. Mustafa Abid Khan, Director, Program & Research, Bangladesh Foreign Trade
Institute stated various initiatives which could help the garments industry step ahead.
He said Bangladeshi RMG sector has initiatives from the government, we have initiative
from the BGMEA, we have initiative from the workers, we have initiative from the
development partners and for the first time we have initiative from the retailers we
accord we have fire safety alert. What they are doing they are thinking about the
workers. They are not only thinking about manufacturers. If you see the accord they
have reserved fund. When factory closed requires rebuilding they have a reserved so
that they can pay. Even in fire safety alliance they have 10% funds. Everybody every
side is thinking about the whole process. Let me just highlight some initiatives you see
that we all knows accord and fire safety alert but they cannot cover all factories. So we
have a government we have a ILO initiative we are thankful to DFID ,Canada ,
Page | 27

Netherland their tacting initiative and funding their cost and they are going to spread all
the factories but only one problem we have now you see that primary spare is
completed primary inspection is completed then there is a need for detail assessment.
In accord we have detail assessment in fire safety alert they are going to detail
assessment but the other factories we dont have detail assessment and that are a big
problem. Another problem is when there is requirement of rebuilding factories we dont
have enough for fund for rebuilding factories then accord and safety alliance may be
they are going to take soft loans for the owners that we are going to do. You see that
another one problem its not a problem but we have to mention there is a demand to
increase wage. Its possible as mentioned by rubina huq in china is paying $170 per
month here we pay $39 + overtime. So its possible to increase the wase but we have to
think how to do it. If we want to do all the social responsibilities and build an image of
RMG there is a cost. Within the factories we can develop the trade union and we can
have the collective bargaining rights through this we can minimize the cost.

Page | 28

Taking the Sector Forward: The Role of Media in Sustainable

Development
Media holds immense importance in the world today. It is suggested that media is a key
institutional mechanism for achieving a successful policy mix that promotes economic
development (C.J. Coyne, 2004). Therefore, it can be implied that the role of media in
shaping the RMG sector of Bangladesh is quite extensive, provided that Bangladesh is
the second largest RMG exporter in the world (Bangladesh Brand Forum, 2013).
Moreover it is noted that the most common intended media effects are; (a) the effects of
advertising on purchasing, (b) the effects of political campaigns on voting, (c) the effects
of public service announcements (PSAs) on personal behavior and social improvement,
(d) the effects of media ritual on social control; and the most common unintended media
effects are (a) emotional behavior, (b) the impact of media images on the social
construction of reality, (c) the effects of media bias on stereotyping, and (d) how media
forms affect cognitive activity and style (McGuire, 1989). Therefore it can be understood
that media has a role in taking the sector, i.e. Bangladeshi RMG, forward.
It should be noted that Bangladesh has managed such a dominion in the
international RMG market despite it not possessing the raw materials for RMG
production. Thus, it is intuitive that Bangladesh is sustaining such a status in the
international RMG platform with much challenge. It should be noted that the RMG
sector of Bangladesh is a major contributor to the countrys economy. Many people
depend on this industry, either directly or indirectly. Since the Bangladeshi media is a
part of the economy, it should try to focus on the positive aspects of the Bangladeshi
RMG sector instead of blatantly emphasizing on the negative ones. However, such a
notion is not promoting any sort of media censorship rather it is suggesting a form of
more standardized and investigative media approach which benefits the economy as a
whole. However, it is noted that journalists are individuals, writing articles to appeal to
other individuals and thus regard negative information as more important, not just based
on their own interests, but also on the interests of their news consuming audience
(Soroka, 2006). This tendency of focusing on the negative colors of the whole picture
should be subjected to some sort of code of conduct that may arise from collaboration
Page | 29

between the manufacturers of the RMG sector and the media. It may also arise from a
collaborative approach that accommodates all the stakeholders of the RMG sector.
Nonetheless, the government may play an important role in both the formats of
collaboration.
The need for collaboration between the media and the RMG lies on the following
grounds:

The creation of a positive global and local image of Bangladesh- of which both
the stakeholders of the media and the RMG sector are citizens

The mutual need of both the sectors to develop a good rapport between the
RMG and the media. This may lead to formulation of consensual code of conduct
that may ensure constructive criticism by the media and beneficial investigation.

The instance of 9/11 might be brought here. The media did not broadcast the
grotesque corpses of the victims of the terrorist attack. Collaboration between the
two sectors may ensure not to broadcast disturbing details of any industrial
catastrophe that gives a bad name to the country and spawns social unrest.

Collaboration may lead to lowering of external costs if a scope of synergy is

exploited. The media may benefit from projecting the positivity of the RMG sector
and contribute in country branding and the RMG may benefit from imminent and
potential research insights of the media

In 1987 World Commission on Environment and Development defined sustainable

development as that development which meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WCED (World
Commission on Environment and Development), 1987). Since the formulation of this
definition and its conceptualization three major aspects of sustainable development
have been in the limelight of recognized discourse (Harris, 2003). These are namely, as
cited by Harris (2003), economic, environmental and social. The media may investigate
upon the RMG sector based on these three parameters and come up with important
research findings. By doing so critical guidelines through media probing might be
obtained that may encourage manufacturers in the RMG sector to take measures that
promote sustainable development.
Page | 30

RMG employs 3.5 million people most of who are women from the sub-privileged
strata of the society. This way the sector is contributing in the empowerment of women
and alleviation of poverty. The economic development and social progress are greatly
benefitted through such roles. The media may shed light on these factors. It should be
noted that majority of the buyers of the Bangladeshi RMG exports are socially and
ethically conscious consumers of the developed world. If the local, i.e. Bangladeshi,
media brings the negative aspects of the RMG sector into limelight with intense
emphasis then the RMG sector will lose market and will be greatly harmed. If such
cases occur then the economy will be harmed as a whole. Therefore, the media needs
to play a balanced role that benefits both the economy and ensures it freedom. The
media may collaborate with the RMG sector in branding Bangladesh to the international
community. In that way greater foreign investments might be encouraged that may
boost the economy of Bangladesh. In today's interdependent marketplace creating,
managing and sustaining a country's brand are crucial for long-term political and
economic success (Anwar, 2010).
Other than that the media may also focus on the positive externalities that the RMG
sector has bestowed upon the country. The media has the power to shape the mindset
and when it comes to local media it holds the significance regarding the way
international media is able to operate. The progress that the RMG sector of Bangladesh
has made in social arenas includes:

Poverty alleviation amongst the rural migrants in urban areas by providing jobs.
This also gives these rural migrants the opportunity to send money to their
families in the villages.

85% of the RMG workers are women- mostly from underprivileged strata of the
society. This employment installed by the RMG sector empowered women which
is a major impetus to the fulfillment of Millennium Development Goals scheme.

The empowerment of women led to the freedom of women which has an

impact on lowering early child marriages, a common occurrence in the lives of
otherwise non-working women from the underprivileged strata of the society. This
is significantly crucial in impacting population growth.
Page | 31

The media needs to focus on these grounds to which the RMG is one of the most
effective but subtle contributories. More seminars like BATEXPO with a greater
presence of media journalists and personalities should be held. This might result in
greater interaction between the two bodies enhancing positive research and beneficial
media projection. A forward plan might include:

Building up of collaborative institutions of the media and RMG sector focusing

on research and in-depth investigation.

Greater and regular media projections of the positive aspects of RMG involving
articles, documentaries and symposia.

A collaborative approach in country branding and changing mindsets

Such measures will undoubtedly bring good results for the economy and the society
as a whole. In addition to that such interactions may enhance the formulation of
systematic guidelines for the RMG sector and the media in relation to proper business
practices and beneficial media ethos respectively.
Participants in the seminar expressed their concern that how the media highlights the
negative image of RMG sector. Experts are also concern about the fact that local media
is playing unanimously active role in badly affecting the positive image of RMG sector to
foreign country and most importantly foreign buyers.
Zafar Sobhan, Editor, Dhaka Tribune spoke about changing the narrative. He said we
should look at the recent tragedies as an opportunity. I believe that the industry and the
government should use the crisis to look inward and start to take the steps that perhaps
could have been taken earlier to move us up the value chain. From infrastructure
development to special economic zones to tax incentives to training to enforcement of
contracts to bringing the industry fully in line with modern international best practices
there is much to be done and is being done. If from the ashes of Rana Plaza and
Tazreen a new, more efficient, more productive RMG industry arises, and then we can
at least say that some good came of the tragic loss of so many lives. Thats a story
worth telling and that people will listen to.
He also explained the mechanism of media journalists and editors the world over
will always choose the easy story to tell. An established story-line is something that your
editor will understand and approve of and it is something that your reader will instantly
identify with. Thus, once a storyline is established, it is common to see report after

Page | 32

report that feeds off of the storyline and builds on it. It takes energy and ingenuity to
change the storyline, to switch the narrative, but that is what needs to be done.
In addition to that he also discussed what should be Role of the media as mentioned
below,
So where do the media come in. We can partner with the industry in a number of
ways. The first is with simply responsible reporting. We all know: if it bleeds it leads.
Bad news sells newspapers. Well, yes and no. In Bangladesh, people are hungry for the
positive stories as well.
We need to focus as much on the success stories as well as the failures. We need
to talk about lives and communities transformed. And make no mistake about it, the
garment industry has done more to lift people out of poverty especially women and to
transform the social fabric of Bangladesh than anything else.
If we live in a country with per capita income above $1,000, where extreme poverty
has been slashed, with universal primary education, where famine is a distant memory,
if we live in a fast-paced, modern and changing country, then the garment industry
should take a large part of the credit.
It is easy to criticize about minimum wages and working conditions, and it is our job
in the media to focus on that, no question, but we also need to be fair, we also need to
show the other side.
How many stories do you see about garment factories transforming their worker
lives or on the difficulties faced by the owners, how many of them live one missed or
cancelled order from ruin.
The international media will take its cue from the local media. If we are to
successfully pitch our new narrative in the international media, we need to internalize it
here at home.
Zafar Sobhan highlighted the steps to take the go forward in his speech. He
mentioned three steps:
1. Communicate with one another. The industry and the media need to get together
and forge an understanding. We cannot work together without better
coordination.
2. Present a united front to the outside world. Not long after Rana Plaza I appeared
on a radio program for BBC world service, where it was clear that the BBC
wanted to tell the story of the evil garment owners of Bangladesh. I didnt go
along. I ensured that all of us on the show, me and the garment owners, were all
on the same page, all on message. There is time enough for us to be critical of
Page | 33

the industry and when called for, it is our job to do so but there is a time and
place for everything. In the international media we must always be aware that
what we say contributes greatly to the image of the country outside our borders.
3. The time for ad hoc approach is long gone. The industry needs a media strategy.
It needs media training, and it needs to get on message. All of you must always
think: How is what I am saying and doing going to be perceived? Is what I am
saying and doing in line with the narrative that we are trying to advance? Do my
words and deeds reflect the new Bangladesh and the new RMG industry I wish
everyone to see? Remember, the media can be on your side, and we can give
you a fair shake, but we can never distort the truth or hide the facts. If the
industry takes missteps, we have no choice but to report them.
Daniel Seidl, Executive Director, BGCCI German House pointed out following facts,
which are important for sustainable development of RMG. Importance of internal and
external factor of RMG is pivotal in deciding performance of RMG sector. . Through
introduction of new code of conduct more emphasized good governance is needed to
be established in the sector. Beside that for workers safety issue and better efficiency
improved infrastructure are required with proper breathing space within the workplace.
And last but not least, to ensure workers are proved proper wage and their demands
are meet trade unions must be introduced.

Page | 34

In Search of Eco Friendly & Compliant factory: Pre Condition to

Future Business
Eco-friendliness in a business context is a relatively novel concept in the capitalist
mindset. The discourse of sustainable development and social accountability has
brought eco-friendliness and compliance in focus in recent times. Concepts like
ecoproneurship (Schalteggar, 2002) and creative destruction (Schumpeter, 1934) have
been discussed earlier by recent scholarship. The fact that most of the environmental
problems are either directly or indirectly caused by human activities and major portion of
these activities constitute economic activities (Kainrath, 2009) play a central role in the
discussion pertaining to eco-friendliness and compliance.
Taking the importance of such factors into consideration the RMG sector of
Bangladesh needs to be brought under the lens of eco-friendliness and compliance.
This is not only because that the RMG sector of Bangladesh is the second largest
apparel manufacturer in the world by volume (Bangladesh Brand Forum, 2012) but also
because it directly employs 4 million people in Bangladesh and most of them are
women. The disruption or collapse of this sector may have repercussions upon the
employment of such a large chunk of the society and thus impacting their standard of
living. Most of the workers in the Bangladeshi RMG sector are women who are from
unprivileged strata of the society. Therefore, mass employment by the RMG sector of
such people empowers them with control over their lives economically and socially as
opposed to the patriarchal hegemony that prevailed on a larger extent status quo ante.
As a result consumption has increased leading to betterment of lives. Job opportunities
in the RMG sector translated to lower child and early marriages in rural Bangladesh.
The economic freedom led to improvement of lives and greater decision making role of
these women in their families. As of effect, alleviations of poverty and population growth
are also largely attributable to the employment of women in the RMG sector.
This is fundamentally due to the fact that the job opportunities in the RMG sector
have allowed rural women, most of who belong to families living in poverty, to come to
urban areas and have an income for themselves. This means that women are
economically independent. Furthermore, in the RMG sector the women are at times
exposed to training and issues that leads to their cognitive enrichment which is thus a
form of education. Therefore, these very women support their families and postpone
their marriages which would otherwise have been the case if they stayed back in the
village. Under such contexts various positive socio-economic externalities occur which
allow the economy and society to progress as a whole.
Hence, with economic and social effects boosted by the RMG sector a lot of other
industries have flourished and are continuing to do so either by being auxiliary to the
Page | 35

sector or by exploiting the various levels of economic affluence gained by the different
people dependent upon this industry. Therefore, entire bodies of corporate development
and economic progress have boomed centering this sector in Bangladesh. Thus, many
sectors are dependent upon the RMG sector in Bangladesh that not only employs 4
million people but indirectly has created employment for innumerable people in the
economy.
The Accord: A New Hope

The Accord represents a new era of collaboration and sincere efforts to make the
Bangladeshi garment industry safe and sustainable through comprehensive inspections,
repairs of factories, training and involvement of workers. (IndustriALL Global Union,
2013).The initiative tackles the most pressing challenges identified within the countrys
rapidly expanded garment manufacturing industry, with specific and measurable
actions, including:

Factory Inspections and Safety Commitment.

Establishing Common Safety Standards for Factories.

Worker Training.

Worker Voice.

Oversight of Alliance.

Semi-annual Progress Reports.

Program Funding.

Supporting Improvements at Factories.

Increased Involvement with the Bangladeshi Government.

The Way Forward

The issue of eco-friendly business is relatively a new concept in the capitalist mindset.
The need for sustainable growth and social accountability has brought the eco-friendly
Page | 36

factor in focus in the recent times. This novelty is a challenge per se and in case of
LDCs that just began to experience the taste of industrialization the challenge is even
more intense. There is thus a need to acclimatize with this challenge and change. The
various ways through which the challenges might be addressed are as follows:
Holding more seminars and symposia to introduce industrialists and
manufactures with the concept of eco-friendly compliant business models.
Bring the benefits of eco-friendly business approach and the measures to
undertake so in foci.
Collaboration of manufacturers and environmentalist NGOs in promoting the ecofriendly compliant factories and business paradigms.
Greater investment on R&D as far as eco-friendliness in business setups is
concerned.
Using the media to bring the concept to limelight

Develop an Action Plan Involving All Parties

The action plan needs to be cohesive in approach and accommodating in nature. The
parties that are the chief components of this scheme are namely the NGO,
environmentalist civil society, the media and last but not the least the manufacturers.
The action plan is required to consist of the following elements:
An intensive promotion of the eco-friendly compliance concept
Systematic holding of regular events discussing the concept
A formulation of a standardized code of conduct in the community of
manufacturers regarding eco-friendly compliance
Funding of research works both academically and corporately
Integrated approaches between the chief parties involved in the system
CSR activities of large organizations focused at RMG workers well-being
The concept of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) might be discussed. Hereby,
corporate entities invest on matters that benefit the society because the firms, too,
belong to the society. A precise definition of CSR does not exist as such. This might be
due to the fact that various views have been taken towards CSR by people with different
convictions (Nada K. Kakabadse, 2005). Since many corporate entities are being
benefitted by the RMG sector and the RMG sector is a major accelerator of economic
progress of Bangladesh, these entities and stakeholders might direct their CSR
activities towards the RMG sector enhancing the eco-friendliness and compliance in the
sector. The media for example may project the good industrial practices undertaken by
various entrepreneurs in the Bangladeshi RMG sector more vis--vis the more negative,
distorted or non-in-depth news regarding the sector projected in current times. However,
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this instance should not be confused with censorship of a free investigative media. It is
rather bringing the brighter side in focus and a form of country branding since
Bangladesh is a dominant player in the global RMG market despite the countrys weak
backward linkage. The media might opt for analytical investigation that would lead to
providing the industry with vital suggestions. Such practices may also synergize in the
form of provision of preliminary research findings. Other than that if the local media
undertakes these sorts of activities, the international media may not display and focus
on the negative sides of the Bangladeshi RMG sector with such vigor and scale. The
issue of country branding focusing upon the dominance of Bangladesh in the RMG
market may also encourage FDI (foreign direct investment) leading to a betterment of
the economic state of Bangladesh. This would be beneficial for all.
The RMG sector and its risk of collapsing in a competitive world should not be taken
lightly based on comparison with other RMG producing countries that have failed earlier
and recovered later, namely Sri Lanka. This is because Bangladesh differs with such
cases on various demographic factors, chiefly education. Therefore, there is a necessity
to build a strategy that benefits all the stakeholders. This strategy provided the context
of the present world and other issues should incorporate sustainable growth.
Sustainable development is conventionally defined as the development that meets the
needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs (WCED (The World Commission on Environment and
Development), 1987). Thus, a strategy instilling sustainable growth is required to come
up with common standards and a meticulous drive giving an outline. The strategy has to
be essentially addressing compliance and eco-friendly practices in the factories of the
RMG sector. All these factors require the formulation of an eco-friendly and compliance
model that also espouses the undertaking of further research work. By eco-friendly
industrial practices issues like waste management, economical consumption of energy
and fuel and reduction of external costs might be addressed. Such issues do not only
inflict less or zero harm upon the ecosystem and environment but also benefits the
practitioners to incur lower costs, efficient operation and thus greater profit. In
implementing such practices common standards with rigorous inspection are required to
be formulated by the alliances of industrialists in the RMG sector (i.e. BGMEA, BKMEA)
and the government. In addition to that research works should be undertaken by
academicians with the co-operation of manufacturers and the government in order to
develop the theoretical frameworks regarding such practices. Subsidies from the
government may also act as incentives for manufacturers to incur eco-friendly practices
in their factories.
One primary aspect of the RMG sector, which is a wet-processing industry, that can
be addressed with an eco-friendly and compliant approach with a drive for sustainable
growth is the water usage by the sector. The free and limitless supply of water which is
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one of the major operational raw materials of the RMG sector is a source of its
whimsical usage. The labors are not trained in using water frugally and thus waste a lot
of water. Sustainable water consumption may not only reduce the cost incurred by an
RMG firm but may also solve the urban water crisis in the country. In order to
promulgate the benefits and cost minimization that result from sustainable water
consumption more research works and pilot projects have be conducted. The empirical
outcomes should be presented widely to interested groups and potential beneficiaries.
According to a case provided by IFC in the BATEXPO Seminar 2013, 18 washing
and dyeing companies invested BDT 0.5 million on sustainable water usage facilities
and installations and saved BDT 2 million. This indicates that eco-friendliness saves
costs and boosts efficiency. The government also has a role to play in order to provide
the sector a proper environment to undertake such sustainability measures. The fact is
eco-friendliness is not understood well by the entrepreneurs as a whole. It should be
addressed to them that eco-friendly practices reduce costs and generate more profit
without harming the environment. Bangladesh is known for being the breeding ground
of many unique concepts, such as microcredit, and thus is a country of great potentials.
If eco-friendliness can be incorporated in the mainstream RMG business policies and
with proper focus on the issue, Bangladesh might be benefitted immensely. The reality
is when Industrial Revolution began in Europe and the Western countries began to
develop they had the luxury of not worrying about the environment. On the contrary,
developing countries like Bangladesh do not have that luxury as of now. A common
model for eco-friendliness and compliance in the RMG sector should also address the
issue of financing such projects. Organizations like IFC (International Finance
Corporation) focus on the private sector and deal with efficient usage of resources and
reduction of pollution. Organizations similar to such ideals and objectives might be
approached.
In addition to all these the issue of compliance is of great significance. Labor
compliance, for example, should not be considered a cost. Such compliances increase
productivity, instill motivation among workers, reduce costs and ensure safety. The
international buyers are conscious consumers and are diligent about the labor
conditions of the factories that supply their garments. The international community
should be communicated regarding the compliance measures that are undertaken both
by the private and the public sector. The media also has a role to play in this regard as
well.
As far as compliance is concerned a whole array of issues need to be addressed.
Compliances involve practices in dealing with labors, workplace safety and a lot of other
aspects. Foreign buyers are increasingly conscious about compliance factors.
Organizations such as Alliance and others have set out compliance guidelines and
requirements. Workplace safety refers to fire and building safety among many others. If
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compliance measures are undertaken then industrial accidents like Tazreen Garments
and Rana Plaza might be avoided in the long run. It should be noted that the mentioned
industrial accidents harmed the image of the Bangladeshi RMG sector among the
international buyers. Much media attention has also been responsible. The government
should give guidelines in regulating the extent and manner in which such accidents can
be projected by the media. This is because unregulated media practices may lead to
devastating repercussions.
The matter of formulating common standards on the matter of compliance is
reiterated. It should be noted that compliance standards given by different buyers
organizations are not the same. Therefore, a uniform and cohesive standard is
necessary both for ease and simplicity. Bangladesh should participate in standard
formulating institutes more and put forth her limitations and challenges so that the
standards are not formulated one-sidedly. As mentioned earlier, a model of ecofriendliness and compliance should benefit all the stakeholders.
Compliance measures enhance the assurance of safety in workers and thus enforce
some sort of loyalty and motivation in them. As a result their productivity and efficiency
are positively impacted. Thus, the factory gains efficiency and incurs lower costs. This
increases the profit of the company. If such measures are implemented by the RMG
sector as a whole then many of its challenges can be countered. Therefore, like ecofriendliness the issue of compliance is also beneficial to the RMG sector. Rewarding
compliant factories may act as incentives and may attract more foreign buyers leading
to a more dominating position of Bangladesh in the international RMG market.
The global concern for the environment in present times is sufficient enough to
predict that eco-friendly business model is the precondition to future business. In the
mid-twentieth century environmentalists pointed out that there were environmental costs
associated with the material benefits, i.e. production, enjoyed. In the latter part of the
twentieth century environmental problems escalated globally (World Wide Fund for
Nature, 2008). In todays world of marketing and entrepreneurship the importance of
principles, protection of the planet and people along with the maintenance of profitability
is massive. It is believed that ecology and economy have often been seen as conflicting
because of the prevailing view that there is an inherent and fixed trade-off between the
two (Volery, 2006). On the contrary, it is found that there are indeed tools that are
available in order to reduce environmental impacts due to economic activities (UNEP,
2007). Hence, the entrepreneurs in the RMG sector of Bangladesh also have to be long
term oriented and start implementing eco-friendly and compliance measures from now
on. Instead of being myopic about material benefits the RMG sector as a whole has to
think ahead. Thus, a collaborative approach is very much necessary and is a call of the
zeitgeist.
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The speakers ranged from academicians, researchers, financial analysts to

members of the stakeholder groups from both the private and public sector. The
seminar chiefly illuminated the audience with the benefits of eco-friendly and compliant
business practices and the positive externalities that result in the society from them. The
speakers also presented the action plan that could be and have been taken in order to
enforce collective eco-friendly business practices.
The following issues have been brought into focus in the seminar:

The absence of backward linkage in the Bangladeshi RMG sector makes it

challenging to sustain the leader position in the global RMG market.
The distorted image of the sector portrayed by the media is harmful to the sector.
The role of the politicians in the enhancement of the sector.
The repercussions upon the society if the sector fails.
CSR activities that can be and should be taken by the stakeholders.
Comparison of Bangladesh with other countries that have failed in the RMG
sector is never a good idea. For instance, Sri Lanka, whose RMG sector
collapsed, recovered quickly but Sri Lanka differs from Bangladesh
demographically and sociologically. Education is a noteworthy difference.
The need for formulating a sustainable strategy that benefits all the stakeholders.
The role of consumers.
The water consumption in wet processing industries and the way it can be
moderated.
The focus on research.
The need for being long term oriented.

Dr. Syed Ferhat Anwar, Professor, IBA (D.U.) shared the positive role of the RMG
sector to our country. It established employment for poor people and provided them a
good life. RMG sector brings huge amount of foreign currency to Bangladesh, which
helps to maintain the balance of payment. The sector, itself contribute immense amount
of money towards the GDP of Bangladesh.
But the sector faces numerous challenges, the biggest challenge its faces is the
non-compliance. Non-compliance increases the chances of accidents in workplace and
overlooks the safety issue of the worker. Besides that, Lack of awareness among
midlevel management, union level and manufacturer are also a big challenge. Lack of
compliance practice has made them unaware of their responsibilities and rights.
Another challenge faced by the sector is, biased approach of media towards the
industry, it has been that media does not highlight any achievement or success by the
industry in their report but minor errors by the industry becomes breaking news, without

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any proper exploration of issue. Media needs to change this approach for the
betterment of RMG sectors positive image towards the global market.
Political instability is another issue. Regular strike and political unrest causes worker
to reach their workplace late or unable to attend work. Politicians and political parties
should focus on avoiding such unrest for the betterment of this country and solve all
kinds of issue in a non-violence manner.
High turnover of workers is another challenge, which is often experience by the
manufacturers. This occurs due to lack of motivation, improper training of workforce and
influential role played by union to quit work,
Apart from high turnover of worker, manufacturers earn a low profit margin, it is also
a fact that most of the garments owners lead a luxurious life but if better profit margin
are earned by the manufacturers, it will be easy for them to provide better wage and
benefit to the workers. With proper profit margin, manufacturers will have easy task to
upgrade their factories and machineries so that more efficiently manufacturing can be
done. If proper profit margin is not given, the industry will experience lack of growth,
Lack of growth wont only affect RMG sector, it will have negative impact of more
than 20 million workers currently working in RMG sector. Apart from that telecom
pharmaceuticals and FMGC are also likely to be impacted by lacks of growth of RMG.
But Bangladesh cant turnaround alike Sri Lanka, the comparative advantage Sri
Lanka has over Bangladesh is their high rate of literacy, which we dont have.
In order to meet and overcome these challenges, following steps can be taken:

A planned effort must be followed, to short, medium and long term

strategies
Efforts that are integrated and driven by specific objectives
Objectives must be stated very clearly
Factory inspection
Safety commitment
Need to find out which specific factory is having , which problem
A common standard is need to be established for factory
The gap between consumer and manufacturer are also needed to be
measured through gap analysis.
The feasibility of brands or buyers working together to increase
productivity is needed to be measure thus manufacturer and buyers can
understand themselves more with less gaps as efficiency is an important
factor for future aspect of the sector.
Implementation of proper business models are also another way of
increase productivity
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International agencies also need become part of taking the RMG sector
ahead by understanding their role.

Last but not least , considering all the events occurred in the past , we have learn a
lot through them with cost of thousands life. It is time to stop this train of lost life and
remove the stain of blood on the sector. All stakeholders should come together with an
oath of not losing one single life in the RMG workplace. It is time to react to prevent the
next, it is time of stop recording talk shows and taking initiatives likes walk shows to
save the RMG sector.

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Conclusion
The RMG industry of Bangladesh undoubtedly has a bright future and potential to
become the leader of global RMG manufacturer. The comparative advantages
Bangladesh has over other RMG manufacturing country are cheap labour and large
capacity to produce as mentioned earlier. With proper and effective development in this
sector along with the comparative advantages the industry pursue in present time. It will
not only benefit the industry itself but also the overall economy of Bangladesh.
Bangladeshi economy is overall dependent on this specific sector, as this sector is
considered as the backbone of nations economy. Banking sector, transport sector and
shipping sector are directly connected with the performance of RMG industry.
It is undeniable fact that the RMG sector has some major setbacks in recent years and
it fails to react the way it was supposed to do. But it is time to look ahead; we should
look in the future and take next steps to avoid such setbacks, ensuring that those
accidents do not occur again. In many instances, disasters are proved to be a game
changer, it enables people to think differently and results better outcome. We can take
our neighbor country India as an example, TSUMANI of 2004 impacted their corporate
outlook and The Sichuan earthquake in 2008 in China killed around 70,000 people and
left more than 5 million homeless, this incident marked a key change in Chinese CSR.
Recent accidents in RMG sector can also be proved as game changer for this industry
as well as for the country. These incidents not only tarnished RMG sectors image but
also vulnerable our economy as the buyers are constantly pushing for cancelling order
to RMG sector. It is time to take some action before any accidents happen again. We
have to accept the motto of being proactive rather than reactive.
Collaboration and co-operation among stakeholders of RMG sector is the key to take
this industry ahead. This report has tried to reflect what industry experts and business
leaders think and their suggestions to take this sector forward. It is not possible for this
sector to work alone to recover from this dire situation. Government, other responsible
administration, foreign buyers, factory owners, workers, media and people of this
country need to work hand in hand.

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Appendix

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