Bangladesh Urged Japanese Entrepreneurs to Increase The Share of Bangladeshi Garments

Bangladesh, the second largest readymade garment exporter, has urged Japanese entrepreneurs to increase the share of Bangladeshi garments in their total apparel import from the current 1.77 percent to at least 10 percent.

Speaking at a press conference in Dhaka, organized to brief the media about the recent visit of a Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) delegation to Japan, M Atiqul Islam, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said Japan annually imports US$ 31.78 billion worth of apparel, and Bangladesh’s share in this is only 1.77 percent.

During the visit, the FBCCI delegation asked the Japanese entrepreneurs to import more clothing items from Bangladesh and take Bangladesh’s share in the country’s total imports to at least 10 percent, Mr. Islam said.

He added that such a step by the Japanese entrepreneurs would also help in minimizing the huge trade gap that currently exists in favour of Japan.

Informing about a FBCCI delegation’s visit to China from June 4, ahead of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit from June 6 to that country, FBCCI president Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed said Bangladesh will offer either a special economic zone or an industrial park to Chinese entrepreneurs who would like to invest in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh will offer an investment alternative to Chinese entrepreneurs who are currently facing high production and labour costs in China, Mr. Ahmed said.

In last fiscal year 2012-13, Bangladesh exported $11.039 billion worth of woven garments and $10.475 billion worth of knitwear. In the first ten months of the ongoing fiscal year July-April 2013-14, Bangladesh’s garment exports increased by 15.38 percent to US$ 19.97 billion, as per data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).