Bangladesh’s RMG sector is the veritable engine driving our economy. While there are genuine worries about relying on one industry, regardless of its scope, for the economy to rely over, until and unless the much-needed diversity is introduced to our export basket, the RMG industry will need to be improved upon at every which way.
To that end, a recent partnership with Sweden regarding renewable energy and its potential link with the RMG sector is a splendid measure that can help make the RMG machine more green and sustainable in the long term.
Bangladesh has been the global leader in LEED-certified factories with 54 of the world’s top 100-ranked factories being ours. Given that it was a little more than a decade ago that disasters such as the Tazreen factory fire and the Rana Plaza collapse were defining the industry, to say that this has been a remarkable turnaround would be an understatement.
While there are also genuine doubts as to what going green has meant for this industry, given that it does little to nothing to stop unscrupulous foreign buyers from behaving the way they do, such measures are still a good indication of Bangladesh’s long-term commitment to sustainable practices in its industry.
As a publication, we have long been proponents of Bangladesh gradually pivoting to renewable energy in its power generation endeavours. Given just how much power an industry such as RMG requires even for day-to-day operations, clean energy just makes sense.
We hope this partnership with Sweden pays dividends given just how important the RMG sector is to Bangladesh -- together we can build a better machine.
Tribune
