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Apparel accessories fair kicks off in Dhaka to boost exports

Star Business Report
GARMENT accessories and packaging manufacturers seek to treble their exports in the next five years.
Bangladesh exported $3.75 billion worth of apparel accessories and packaging items in the last fiscal year, said Rafez Alam Chowdhury, president of Bangladesh Garment Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
The sector, which forms a backward linkage to the readymade garment industry, is now aiming to export $12 billion worth of accessories and packaging items by 2018, he said. The country's RMG sector used to depend on imported packaging materials and accessories a decade ago, Chowdhury said.
“But now, the local manufacturers are not only catering to the sector, but are also exporting items.”
Chowdhury's comments came at the launch of GAP EXPO-2013, a four-day exhibition on garments accessories, packaging and related-machinery being held at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre.
Bangladesh's apparel accessories and packaging makers directly export 15 percent of the industry's total products and the remaining 85 percent are exported with other items such as RMG, frozen foods and pharmaceuticals.
The backward linkage industry makes around 35 items including buttons, cartons, packaging materials, elastic, drawstrings, embroidery materials, interlinings, labels, padding materials, poly bags, sewing threads, zippers, plastic items, backboards, neck-boards, gum taps and barcodes.
Chowdhury, however, said faster growth in this sector would depend on necessary policy support from the government such as easy access to credit, lower interest rates and establishing a separate institute for the sector.
Three international trade fairs are being held to showcase garment accessories and packaging products, machineries and yarn and fabrics.
The International Garment Accessories and Packaging Exposition (GAPEXPO) is displaying garment accessories, packaging and machineries to local and international garment makers.
The other two events are Garmentech, which is displaying garment and allied machineries, and the Yarn and Fabrics Showcasing Fair.
Commerce Minister GM Quader inaugurated the exposition. BGAPMEA organises the expositions in association with ASK Trade & Exhibition and Zakaria Trade & Fair International, Chowdhury said.
Companies from China, India, Pakistan, Taiwan, Australia, Germany, UAE, Thailand and Japan are participating in the fairs, he said.
About 1,200 members of the association are displaying export-oriented accessories, he said.
A total of 350 companies are displaying their products at the 560 booths at the fair which will remain