Decarbonisation, transition from the list of least developed countries (LDCs) and the impact of automation on the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) are the three urgent challenges that Bangladesh needs to address for sustainable development of the domestic readymade garments (RMG) industry and to face competition, a recent roundtable in Dhaka was told.
The roundtable, titled ‘Bunon 2030: Policy discussion’, was jointly organised by Policy Exchange Bangladesh and global business consultancy firm LightCastle Partners.
Zahedul Amin, co-founder and director of LightCastle Partners, said as the impending 4IR poses a threat to jobs due to automation and artificial intelligence, there is an urgent need to reskill and upskill workers to mitigate job displacement.
Mohammad Selim Hossen, deputy secretary in the ministry of commerce, said free trade agreements necessitate diversification of the export basket, and Bangladesh could adopt a product-based business model and invest in sector-specific initiatives to facilitate the transition away from reliance on the RMG sector, domestic media outlets reported.
Abdur Rahim Khan, inspector general, department of inspection for factories and establishments, said emulating successful models like the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme in India, tailored mechanisms could be devised to support and incentivise Bangladeshi apparel export market.
Originally published in Fibre2Fashion.
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