STAFF CORRESPONDENT

A portion of fresh apparel work orders are moving from Bangladesh to other countries because of political uncertainty and gas and electricity supply crises, said a group of trade body leaders and exporters yesterday.

“We are in a risky place,” said Showkat Aziz Russell, president of the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), at a seminar organised by the Bangladesh Garment Buying House Association (BGBA) on the current challenges in the garment sector and the way forward.

He called on the interim government to hold the election on time and to hand over power to the elected government.

The inflow of work orders from international clothing retailers and brands is slowing, he said.

“But the data is being presented in the wrong way -- like the previous government did. The current government is also not noticing the problems like a blind person. It is a matter of grief that the newly-elected BGMEA president could not avail an appointment of the chief adviser in 120 days.”

The members of the BTMA, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) and the BGBA have already invested $75 billion and account for 85 percent of the total exports, he added.

Because of the gas crisis and three to four hours load-shedding, factories cannot make goods in timely manner, said Mohammed Zakir Hossain, secretary general of BGBA.

“We are passing through a bad time because of the current overall uncertain situation of the country -- if those challenges are not resolved soon, the crisis will only deepen further,” said Mohammad Rashed, vice-president of BKMEA.

A portion of expected work orders are shifting to other countries or taking longer to finalise, said BGMEA Director Faisal Samad.

“The garment sector has turned into a crisis management sector, as every day there is a new crisis.”

He and former BGMEA director Shovon Islam criticised the government for reducing the signatories needed for forming a trade union in factories from 50 to 20.

BNP Standing Committee Member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said if his party comes to power, it will defer the LDC graduation as the businesses need a lot of preparation for smooth graduation.