The South Asian region, Oceania, CIS and Latin American countries could be the next relevant export destinations for Bangladesh’s apparel industry which is desperately seeking diversification and sustainability in an attempt to stay competitive in the global apparel market, a recent study titled “Expansion and Facilitation of the RMG sector of Bangladesh” articulated.
Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute (BFTI), a Dhaka-based autonomous research institute, carried out the study as per the instruction of a task force under the Bangladesh Commerce Ministry on the RMG sector. The study released its findings at a workshop organised by the Ministry in the capital last week.
According to the study, Bangladesh readymade garment industry has been struggling to cope up with several challenges including product and market concentration, productivity level of workers, scarcity of domestic mid-level managers and poor backward and forward linkages, which need to be confronted for further expansion of the sector.
BFTI also placed some recommendations in order to promote existing product categories and export destinations, put a high emphasis on increased productivity and widely acceptable professionalism and branding.
In its observation, however, the research institute pinpointed that Bangladesh’s readymade garment products are destined for only a handful selected markets namely the US, the EU and Canada which comprised of some 63 per cent, 18 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively, of the total readymade garment exports.
The exporters and manufacturers should reach beyond their comfort zone which is the only alternative for the diversification and sustainability of the sector, the researchers said.
New and non-traditional markets must be explored, they said, dubbing the South Asian region, Oceania, CIS and Latin American countries as the new probable export destinations.
They also suggested that the global apparel business is now no longer a basic item-based trade rather the focus has been shifting rapidly on up-scale items, therefore, Bangladesh should concentrate on raising its product standard and move towards value-added products like suit/blazer, lingerie, jackets, swimwear, sportswear, uniform, raincoat and fishing wear.
