The World Economic Forum on Monday saluted Denim Expert and Green Delta Insurance’s sustainable business practices in its New Champion Awards, which honours companies exploring business models, technologies and sustainable growth strategies that will be needed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
The two Bangladeshi companies received Honourable Mention in the ‘Excellence in Sustainability’ category.
Chittagong-based Denim Expert, which was established in 2009, is actively working to promote sustainability and inclusivity in the apparel industry in Bangladesh, the WEF said.
In 2019, the firm set sustainable goals and targets across several areas including reducing consumption of energy and water, carbon dioxide emissions and waste generation.
In association with the USAID, the firm is also working to provide opportunities to transgender people and human trafficking survivors.
“There is no alternative to sustainability and innovation for surviving in the global market,” Mostafiz Uddin, managing director of Denim Expert, told Dhaka Tribune in his immediate reaction.
For the last couple of years, Bangladeshi apparel manufacturers have taken lots of initiatives such as establishing green factories and introducing the latest technology and machinery to become environment-friendly manufacturers.
“The recognition by the WEF is a great achievement for Bangladesh as well as the apparel industry. This gives a message to the world that Bangladesh cares about the environment.”
The virtue signalling will help Bangladesh attract more buyers and turn Bangladesh as a hub for sourcing sustainable goods, he added.
Green Delta Insurance, the largest insurer in Bangladesh,worked with the ministry of health and economics to provide affordable universal health coverage that now impacts 82,000 households directly and 65,000 people indirectly, the WEF said.
“We at Green Delta Insurance (GDIC) have made sustainability an integral part of everything we do. We are truly honored to be recognized as a New Champion organization by WEF for excellence in sustainability! My heartiest congratulations to all my fellow members of Green Delta family, as their dedication and hard work have made such recognition possible,” said