BGMEA urges EU to support Bangladesh in securing smooth, sustainable economic transition
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Faruque Hassan on Wednesday emphasised the need for continued cooperation of the European Union (EU) to support Bangladesh in securing a smooth and sustainable economic transition.
"The European Union is the largest trade partner of Bangladesh. It's encouraging to note that our trade with the EU is growing," he said at the conference on 'EU-Bangladesh Cooperation – Opportunities and the Bengal Tiger Economy'.
He also said, "In the last 10 years, the bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Europe has increased by 5.87% annually. It is mainly due to the trade preferences Bangladesh get from the EU under the GSP scheme."
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The conference was hosted by the Study Circle London and the European Institute for Asian Studies (EIAS) in Brussels to highlight impressive progress made by Bangladesh in different sectors and prospects of more development.
Lin Goethals, director of EIAS, made the welcome remarks while Ambassador of Bangladesh to Belgium Mahbub Hassan Saleh delivered the opening speech.
The BGMEA president said, "The EU has been a consistent partner of our development and has contributed to attaining the status of developing country."
The EBA scheme has been one of the critical success factors for our textile and garment industry so far, he said.
"We need to focus on how the partnership between Bangladesh and the EU could be further deepened, and how we can retain our market access and share in the EU. It is important that we receive a three-year extension on top of the three-year transition time considering the fact that this sector has contributed to women empowerment, employment generation and Bangladesh's position in global humanitarian response with regard to the Rohingya crisis," Faruque Hassan said.
"At the same time, we believe the automatic textile safeguard clause issue in the EU GSP scheme will be addressed so that Bangladesh can continue its share of the EU market."
He also said Bangladesh has immense opportunities to enhance its exports, and the EU can play a key role in enabling Bangladesh to tap the potential.
"Time is ripe for shaping the Bangladesh‐EU relationship in line with the demands of the changing times," he added.
