US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas has praised the RMG industry of Bangladesh for its huge progress in ensuring workplace safety and workers’ rights and welfare, stressing on the importance of carrying forward the accomplishments.
He also expressed hope that Bangladesh’s garment industry would continue its development initiatives in the coming days.
Ambassador Haas met BGMEA President Faruque Hassan at BGMEA Complex in Uttara on Sunday.
The US Ambassador emphasized their commitment to work together to spur progress on fundamental labor rights in the industry.
The BGMEA President underscored ethical buying practices and fair prices of products to build a more resilient supply chain system where workers’ rights and welfare are considered with high importance.
He also appraised the envoy about the formation of Minimum Wage Board by the government of Bangladesh for garment workers’ minimum monthly wages.
The achievements have made the industry a role model for others to emulate, he added.
Faruque Hassan said Bangladesh’s apparel industry was giving special emphasis on diversifying from basic to value-added garments, especially those made from non-cotton and technical textiles while making huge efforts and investment in technological upgradation, skills and efficiency enhancement in order to continue the sector’s growth momentum.
He requested the U.S. government to allow duty-free access of the garments made of the cotton imported from the US, saying it would benefit both Bangladeshi RMG exporters and US cotton growers, thus creating a win-win situation.
Faruque Hassan sought cooperation of the USA in making the process of importing cotton from the USA easier.
The BGMEA President informed the U.S. Ambassador about the BGMEA’s initiative to organize the Bangladesh Apparel Summit in the USA in October 2023 and requested him to expend support in organizing the event.
He also apprised the envoy of BGMEA’s initiatives of raising awareness among the garment manufacturers about intellectual property rights and counterfeit products.
He sought the support of the U.S. government for developing a better industrial relationship by jointly organizing training and seminars for workers, union leaders and entrepreneurs.
During the visit, the envoy was accompanied by Leena Khan, Labor Attaché, Department of Labor, Arturo Hines, Deputy Political Economic Counselor, Megan Francic, USDA/FAS, Agricultural Attaché, Kaitlyn Denzler, USAID/DRG Labor Team Lead, Emelda Mullick, USAID/DRG, Labor Team, and Saifuzzaman Mehrab, Political and Economic Section, Labor Assistant.
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