The Dutch ambassador to Bangladesh Gerben de Jong has urged Bangladesh’s readymade garment manufacturers to earn the trust of buyers to retain the growth in the sector.
He was speaking as chief guest at a seminar titled “Taking the RMG sector forward: The role of media” in Dhaka on Tuesday.
“The EU and Netherlands want to see transparency and labour safety in every stage of production,” said Ambassador Gerben.
He said the EU-led RMG Safety Accord and the North American Alliance are working together with the Bangladeshi government to improve the conditions in the sector and make the factories compliant.
Bangladesh German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BGCCI) executive director Daniel Seidl, Advocate Tuhin Malik, BGMEA president Atiqul Islam and vice president Shahidullah Azim, former DCCI president Asif Ibrahim and Benchmark Ltd managing director Ashraf Kaiser, among others, were also present.
Dhaka Tribune editor Zafar Sobhan presented the keynote paper at the function.
Daniel Seidl said: “Brand of Bangladesh is not very positive and the entrepreneurs have to keep in mind that Bangladesh is not the only choice of buyers.”
He put stress on journalists’ free access to information to make the sector transparent. BGCCI official alleged foreign journalists are sometimes denied visa to Bangladesh, which sends a negative message to the outside world.
Bangladesh’s Supreme Court lawyer Tuhin Malik suggested providing fund to the media campaign to rebuild the lost image of the sector.
Ashraf Kaiser said BGMEA should share the industry’s successes and challenges to the journalists on a regular basis, not merely holding press conference after a big incident happens.
Asif Ibrahim said managing director of New Age Group, commenting on media’s role.
“We need to work hand in hand to rebuild the image of the country’s apparel sector in the outside word.”
Zafar Sobhan said the media can partner with the industry in a number of ways, the first of which, will be simply responsible reporting.
“We all know, if it bleeds it leads (in the newspapers). Bad news sells newspapers. But in Bangladesh, people are hungry for the positive stories as well.”
Zafar Sobhan said the garment industry has done a lot to lift the people, especially the women, out of poverty in Bangladesh and to transform the social fabric here than anything else.
