I am writing to update you on a recent event that BGMEA held recently. You are aware that Bangladesh has the diplomatic presence of several countries, but there are countries (some of which have high potential for our RMG industry) that do not have their missions (Embassies / High Commissions) here. In many cases, their missions in New Delhi have the concurrence for Bangladesh. Since we almost regularly interact with the foreign missions located in Bangladesh, we felt the urge to connect with the non-resident missions in New Delhi. Therefore, for the first time, BGMEA united almost all the non-resident ambassadors to Bangladesh, i.e. Ambassadors, High Commissioners, Charge D’affairs, and officials of different missions in New Delhi in a local hotel on February 29.
This initiative aimed to promote trade and investment opportunities with Bangladesh while cultivating stronger connections with nations holding untapped potential.
For the first time, BGMEA organized such an event to highlight the vast potential for trade and investment in Bangladesh, with a focus on building mutually beneficial relationships among stakeholders.
We invited the Ambassadors and High Commissioners of several countries, and happily, many responded to our invitation and participated in the event. About 80 delegates including Ambassadors/ High Commissioners/ Chargé d’affaires appeared in the reception and engaged in the discussion.
The event followed an unofficial format to allow networking and interactions among the participants and our delegates. Excellency High Commissioner of Bangladesh to India Mr. Mustafizur Rahman was also present on this occasion.
While I focused on the transformation of our readymade garment industry and the socio-economic and infrastructural improvements in our country, my focus was to inspire them to explore Bangladesh as a sourcing destination, as well as for investments. I have presented our industry in terms of its capabilities, social and environmental transformation, and also recent advancements in product categories.
Part of my deliberation highlighted the significance of supply chain collaboration. We Bangladesh import a lot of fibers like cotton, wool, polyester, synthetics, viscose, etc. to meet the needs of our industry, and we import those from different countries. We also source dyes, chemicals, machinery, and equipment, as well as petrochemical chips for our accessory industry. I inspired them to explore Bangladesh to find the scope of supplying these raw materials, as we want to diversify our raw material sourcing base. I invited them to visit Bangladesh and organize exchanges of delegations from their respective countries.
The enthusiasm among the diplomats to enhance bilateral trade and cooperation was noteworthy. All we need is to explore the potential in different markets, both for our finished products and also for raw materials.
Apparel diplomacy has been a cornerstone of the present Board of BGMEA and we have made all-out efforts to connect the potentials of our industry across the world. Some of the successes of these initiatives are already evident, while apparel diplomacy will be crucial for our industry in the coming years as we graduate to a middle-income country.
