Lausanne Switzerland (BBN) – Impact Economy announced this week the launch of the Bengali Edition of “Sustainable Apparel Value Chains: A Primer on Industry Transformation.” The Primer analyzes the competitiveness and sustainability issues facing the USD 3 trillion (and counting) global textile and garment industry.
“Bangladesh’s USD 22 billion readymade garment export industry is the country’s main growth driver and has been instrumental in reducing poverty by a third since the 1990s. Prompted by the tragic Rana Plaza accident last April, Bangladesh has now become a pilot case for how to build sustainable apparel manufacturing clusters in emerging markets,” said Dr. Maximilian Martin, the author of the report and founder of Impact Economy.
Since its beginnings in the mid-1980s, the Bangladeshi industry has grown to over 5,600 factories producing for export, creating about 20 percent of GDP, 80 percent of total export earnings, and over 4.0 million direct jobs, employing 85 percent women.
A win-win of raising productivity and competitiveness, as well as social and environmental performance, is possible. But an ambitious, systemic approach is needed. “The apparel industry can help youthful Bangladesh to become one of the world’s most vibrant economies,” said Martin. “To achieve this, combining higher in-country value added with better social and environmental performance is key.”
Despite progress, the industry is less sustainable today than it has ever been. After Rana Plaza, two buyer-led initiatives to improve fire and building safety in Bangladesh were set up: the European-led Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety and its US counterpart, the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. Further, the Government designed a National Tripartite Plan of Action as a catalyst for all stakeholders to work together.
BBN/SSR/AD-27Mar14-10:22 am (BST)
