Fair trade ‘on the way’ in Bangladesh, says chief of European Parliament’s international trade body

Bangladesh has risen greatly in promise after the collapse of Rana Plaza caused a huge upset in its business future, says the chairman of European Parliament’s International Trade Affairs (INTA) Committee.

Bernd Lange was leading a delegation of INTA representatives visiting Bangladesh, which also included Jean Lambert, the head of EP’s delegation for South Asia.

The team got together with top officials of the Bangladesh government, politicians and business leaders at a reception hosted at the residence of European Union Ambassador to Dhaka, Pierre Mayaudon, on Tuesday evening.

The committee was set to visit several pharmaceutical and apparel factories on Wednesday. 

“We have a lot of work to do, and the committee handles them very carefully. There are good and bad deals. We keep the good and the bad we reject. But Bangladesh has achieved 6.5 percent annual growth, which some European countries still dream of,” said Lange.

Fair trade was “on the way” for Bangladesh, the European Parliament official told bdnews24.com. “No doubt it is. It was very different in 2000, during Begum (Khaleda) Zia’s regime. Rana Plaza in 2013 put its security at risk but a lot has been achieved,” he said.

“While there are some who like to see the glass half empty, I’ll say it is half full,” said the ITA committee chairman, about trading with Bangladesh.

Jean Lambert, chairman of European Parliament's South Asia delegation (clockwise to left), INTA committee chairman Bernd Lange and EU Ambassador Pierre Mayaudon at a reception hosted for visiting representatives of INTA members in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Bangladesh enjoys duty-free quota in Europe, its main market, for all products under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) as one of the 48 Least Developed Countries (LDC).   

“I believe more countries should get this privilege, and they may take Bangladesh as an example.”

The business landscape since Rana Plaza has adopted many changes, he said, with more trade unions and security measures for workers. Organisations like ACCORD were set up to ensure factory safety after Rana Plaza, a building in Savar housing multiple garment factories, collapsed killing more than 1,000 workers and maiming more in one of the largest industrial disasters.

Md Atiqul Islam, who was president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the apparel industry lobby, during the turmoil that followed the building collapse, was among the guests.

“After the tragedy you could not say ‘Made in Bangladesh’ without inviting some form of criticism. But now I can say that with great pride,” he told bdnews24.com.

He said he came under heavy criticism from business leaders for accepting Alliance and Accord, legally binding safety agreements with the US and European buyers, in the wake of the Rana Plaza tragedy. “But I told them it was our only option to save our future.”

“Our earning from the sector was $24.5 billion at the time of the collapse, which is now $28.1 billion. We were able to recover in three years and achieve buyer confidence as a result of better communication and all platforms working together for passing the crisis.”

Bernd Lange, the chairman of European Parliament's INTA committee, speaks at a reception hosted for the visit of INTA representatives in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Atiqul commented that even though most factories in Bangladesh had proper safety equipment in place, it was the small and medium enterprises that still posed risk. These risky setups comprised about 30 percent of the country’s apparel business sector, according to the former BGMEA chief.    

“But the safety situation I would say is still better than China, which holds 38 percent of global trade while we do 5 percent. I’d say the same for Indian factories,” he said, adding that Bangladesh was still ahead, considering “it was not a level playing field.” 

Bangladesh offers a rich prospect for job creation, employing mostly female workers in its apparel sector, said Srinivas B Reddy, country director of International Labour Organization (ILO).

“The future is good because entrepreneurs in Bangladesh are resilient. The workers are high-skilled and available in a compact area.

"I believe Bangladesh’s goal for achieving $50 billion by 2020 is very much possible if it adopts a inclusive model where the workers can say what they want,” the local ILO chief told bdnews24.com.

“That can be a reality if skills-development training is imparted and dignity of workers is raised,” said Nazma Akter, President of worker’s rights group, Sammilito Garments Sramik Federation.

Parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Prime Minister’s International Affairs Adviser Gowher Rizvi, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, FBCCI President Matlub Ahmed, former minister and senior BNP leader Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and former foreign secretary and diplomat Farooq Sobhan were present among the guests.