The Garment Industry Of Bangladesh
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THE GARMENT INDUSTRY OF BANGLADESH
Introduction:
The garment industry has played a pioneering role in the development of industrial sector of Bangladesh. Though it took a rather late start i.e., in 1976 but it soon established its reputation in the world market within a short span of time. Resultantly garment is now one of the main export items of the country. Besides, enriching the countrys economy it has played a very important role in alleviating unemployment. At present there are more than two thousand one hundred garment factories in the country employing more than 12 lack labors. 85 percent of the labor force is women.
Once Sri-Lanka was leader in this field in South Asia and India was its competitor. After a bloody civil war resulting in the quick demise of the garments industry of Sri-Lanka and India, the international buyers and investors diverted their attention towards Bangladesh. As a result the garments industry of Bangladesh expanded with unprecedented success. During the financial year 1993-94 Bangladesh earned 6199.8 cores Taka.
Contribution in the national economy
The role of the RMG sector in our national economy can hardly be over-emphasized. There has been a steady development in our RMG export field during at least the last decade and a half but in the last few years it has been unique. The export of RMG recorded an average growth of 21.53% since 1994-95, which grew to 76.05% by the year 1999.The table, is given bellow elaborates the growth.
Development of the Export of RMG Sector
Export of RMG (in Mln. US$)
Total Export (in Mln. US$)
Share of RMGs to Total Export
1993-94
1555.79
2533.90
61.40
1994-95
2228.35
3472.56
64.17
1995-96
2547.13
3882.42
65.61
1996-97
3001.25
4418.28
67.93
1997-98
3781.94
5161.20
73.28
1998-99
4019.98
5312.86
75.67
2810.38
3695.46
76.05
Source: Bangladesh Export Statistics, Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) (Compiled).
The table below helps to understand the situation more clearly.
Development of the Export (in Million Taka) of different Sectors from 1993 to 1999
Commodities
1993-94
1994-95
1995-96
1996-97
1997-98
1998-99
Amount
Amount
Amount
Amount
Amount
Amount
Woven
51 47.21
50.97
7360.53
52.85
7970.65
50.20
9529.18
50.65
12900.18
55.09
14320.80
56.18
1052.58
10.42
1577.37
11.32
2447.12
15.41
3250.11
17.28
4266.17
18.22
4967.67
19.49
Total RMG
6199.79
61.40
8937.9
64.17
10417.77
65.61
12779.29
67.93
17166.35
73.31
19288.47
75.67
Frozen Food
638.91
1225.93
1283.01
365.65
1333.13
1316.17
152.14
131.54
135.51
162.39
21 5.36
184.99
Raw Jute
227.23
318.74
371.12
495.29
488.94
344.14
Chemical Product
21 6.73
431.65
402.68
461.89
363.21
380.19
Leather
670.16
810.52
865.86
832.35
863.21
807.20
1130.89
11.20
1278.62
1345.29
1353.45
1276.82
1457.78
Grand Total
10097.59
100.00
13928.46
100.00
15879.09
100.00
18813.04
100.00
23416.37
100.00
25491.10
100.00
Source: Bangladesh Export Statistics, Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) (Compiled).
Back in the 80s, a large number of private sector initiatives were taken in manufacturing sectors like the RMG industry. The RMG industry has enjoyed a meteoric rise from less than 50 factories in 1983 to over 3000 in 1999. In between this period, the level of employment has increased from some 10,000 to approximately 1.5 million today (see Table: 3); with its share of employment in the manufacturing industry increasing from a mere 2% to over 15%.A table is given bellow,
The number of the factories
No. of Factories
Source: Bangladesh Statistics, EPB
The reasons behind the huge success
The success story of the Readymade Garments sector of Bangladesh is based on employment generation and increasingly high value addition, thus smoothening the path for growth and development of the country. The apparel and garment industry propels sectors such as banking, finance and insurance, cargo, shipping and transport, entertainment and hospitality, research and education and a lot more. The mentioned performance of the industry has been possible due to:
The Government of Bangladesh has always been concerned about the sectors growth and has played an active role as a catalyst to solve various complexities, whenever intervention was necessary.
The cheap but disciplined and regimented workforce has been key for the success of this industry.
The entrepreneur class has been dedicated and motivated to the countrys economic prosperity.
The quality of the manufactured apparel, which has been increasingly recognized by our international buyers and end users all over the world.
Buyers response has been encouraging through repeat orders. The industry has been producing all sort of apparels for all seasons and has managed to get repeat orders for every season.
The import policy of Bangladesh has been flexible and friendly for import of accessories.
Although there are accountable anomalies, the financial institutions, both nationalized and private, have been serving to assist this sector.
Readymade garment industries have managed to maintain the confidence of the buying class and others in the business.
Although the backward linkage textile industry is not adequate for the needs of the RMG industry,