First ever Bangladesh Apparel Summit held in Australia

The Bangladesh Apparel Summit was organized in Melbourne, on 18 July 2023, to demonstrate the strengths and transformation of the RMG industry of Bangladesh into a safe and sustainable apparel sourcing hub in the world.

This was the first-ever Summit organized abroad by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) in association with HSBC.

The summit was supported by Bangladesh High Commission in Australia while Snowtex Group, Team Group, Green Textile Limited, a concern of Epic Group, and Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) were the event partners.

The event brought together a wide spectrum of stakeholders including brands and retailers, and also people from academia, NGOs including Oxfam Australia, Action Aid, cotton and wool suppliers, and Australian government officials. 

The summit served as an opportunity for fruitful discussion, interactions, and exchange of views and information. 

International speakers and experts took part in three sessions including an opening plenary on separate topics in the summit.

The opening plenary was addressed by Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA,  Antony Shaw, CEO, HSBC Australia, Ian Bailey, Managing Director, Kmart Group and H.E. M. Allama Siddiki, Bangladesh High Commissioner to Australia.

Shahidullah Azim, Vice President of BGMEA, made the welcome speech while Shovon Islam, Chair of BGMEA Standing Committee on Press, Publicity and Publication, anchored the opening session.

In his speech, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan gave an overview of the RMG industry of Bangladesh, detailing how the sector has made vast progress in the areas of workplace safety, environmental sustainability and workers' welfare, further boosting the confidence of international buyers in garments made in Bangladesh.

Highlighting the industry's vision to elevate its position as a high-value apparel exporter, he said, "There is a wider perception that Bangladesh is a commodity producer, which is not true anymore. You will be surprised to know that we are manufacturing garments worth more than 100 dollars per unit price. We have taken a vision to remodel our industry - from labour-intensive manufacturing to innovation, high-value and modern manufacturing process." 

He also said, "We are now the largest source of Denim, both in USA and EU markets. In quantity terms, we have already become the largest apparel source for Europe."

"Australia is one of the emerging and high-potential trade and investment partners of Bangladesh. In the last 8 years, the bilateral trade between the two countries has increased by 8.95% annually. Currently, apparel is the main export for Bangladesh to Australia. In the last fiscal year 2022-23, our export to Australia crossed the billion dollars milestone for the first time," Faruque Hassan said, adding that more potential lies ahead to enhance export share in the Australian market.

"And, that is where, I believe, Bangladesh and Australia have much to gain and benefit by collaborating with each other," he further said.

Bangladesh's latest garment products were shown through an exhibition at the summit visited by the participants including buyers.

An exclusive photo exhibition of Bangladesh and its nature was organized as part of the summit which attracted huge attention and appreciation from the visitors. 

MasterChef Australia Kishwar Chowdhury catered her famous dishes at the dinner followed by the summit that amazed the gathering. 

Joanne Ryan MP, Federal Member for Lalor and Chief Government Whip, gave the closing remark at the summit while Dr. Sharif As-Saber, President, GAIN International, shared the summary of the summit.

The first session of the summit focused on the topic titled "Trade between Australia and Bangladesh – Charting the path for next decade". 

Mahbub-ur-Rahman, CEO, HSBC Bangladesh; Paul Murdoch, Brand Production Manager, Cotton On Group; Kevin Roberts, Co-Founder, No timid souls; and Dr. Wahed Waheduzzaman, Lecturer, Swinburne University of Technology shared their insights as speakers in the session which was moderated by Asif Ashraf, Director, BGMEA.

The speakers shed light on how the Bangladesh-Australia bilateral trade relationship could be further enhanced by addressing the progress of Bangladeshi trade in the Australian market. 

They also shared their thoughts on a possible pathway for Bangladesh's ambitious goal of achieving a '100 billion dollars' RMG export turnover and how Australia could complement particularly in the area of innovation, technology adaptation and high-end segments.

The second session was on "Sustainability matters – ESG collaborations to shape the future of fashion" where Leila Naja Hibri, CEO, Australian Fashion Council; Lyn Morgain, CE, Oxfam Australia; Rachid Maliki, General Manager - Global Sourcing & Supply chain, Country Road, Dr. Shelley Marshall, Associate Professor, RMIT University and Charith Jayasundera, ESG Strategy Expert,  KPMG Australia took part as speakers. Shams Mahmud, Chair of BGMEA Standing Committee on Foreign Mission Cell, moderated the session.  

The session focused on the critical aspects of sustainability within Bangladesh's RMG sector and Australia's priorities. 

Transparency, traceability, responsibility, and the need for a fair and equitable share in the supply chain were also topics of discussion in the session. The well-being of workers, emphasizing rights, safe working conditions, and social welfare were also highlighted in the discussion. 

Bangladesh's remarkable sustainability transformation, along with the country's commitment to sustainable practices and its progress toward achieving key environmental, social, and governance goals were discussed in the session.