A renewed vision for a sustainable RMG industry

The ready-made garment (RMG) industry of Bangladesh has advanced rapidly in the last decade, increasing its annual export earnings from $12.49 billion in fiscal year 2009-10 to $42.61 billion in fiscal year 2021-22.

The robust growth in the apparel sector, which helped Bangladesh achieve both international prowess and domestic prosperity, did not come by chance. 

It has been possible mainly because of modernisation and technological upgradation of factories over the past decade, as well as the strides in workplace safety, environmental sustainability and compliance issues.

Since its inception, sustainability has always been a key strategic priority for the RMG industry of Bangladesh. In about four decades, the industry has emerged as the lifeblood of the Bangladesh economy, accounting for more than 81% of the country's export earnings.  

The industry has successfully created a strong and impressive foothold in the global apparel value chain through unparalleled efforts in workplace safety and environmental sustainability. 

Sustainability is not only about fulfilling social, ecological and community obligations; it is also about how we remain economically viable through innovation, digitisation, diversification and being more productive. 

Today, Bangladesh is globally acclaimed as one of the safest and most environmentally-friendly apparel manufacturing countries in the world, with the highest number of green factories certified by USGBC. We are also a front-runner in transparency, which adds unique ethical values to our products.    

As a manifestation of the excellence the industry has achieved, Bangladesh is now the second largest garment manufacturer in the world, with its products being exported to as many as 167 countries. 

However, we cannot let complacency set in, and efforts to scale up excellence must never stop. Excellence is a continuous journey that never ends.

We are living in a complex world where the risks, challenges and prosperities are interconnected. The values and visions of global businesses are continuously being recalibrated from time to time, focusing on sustainability.  

As the country's RMG sector aspires to become a leader in sustainable manufacturing, the industry is preparing itself for the next growth phase. Therefore, we have realigned our vision with ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) priorities.

Our beloved association, BGMEA, which has been serving as the beacon for the industry for decades, needs to adopt changes in its philosophy, vision, missions, and in its corporate identity, for even greater success. 

While we were redesigning our new logo and revisiting our vision, our first and foremost priority was to preserve the heritage of BGMEA. 

This organisation has provided the much-needed direction to the highest export earning sector of Bangladesh through prudent and successive leaderships in our legacy. 

Over the years, the industry has made tremendous strides in social and economic fronts, and has been successfully transformed. Our successive leaders have directed this organisation through thick and thin in that process. That is what we wanted to keep intact and unchanged. 

Therefore, the fundamental colour palette of the new logo has been kept unchanged. The difference is that now, we have a story behind the colours and symbols of the logo.  

Thus, BGMEA is coming out with a new logo, which is coded as 'nine-dots'. The 'dots' will connect the positive forces and stakeholders toward the common global goals to realign our business strategy with the changing landscape of the global economy.    

We have designed the 'nine-dots' in a way that when deciphered the first dot means, people come first. Our motto is to forever work for the well-being of the people of Bangladesh and humankind at large, inside and outside the industry. 

Here, the underlying principle is to improve conditions for the country's approximately four-million garment workers, contribute to the national economy and improve the fate of the common people.    

The second dot centers on inclusivity, which is already one of the hallmarks of Bangladesh RMG industry. Being the country's largest formal sector employer, with around 80% of our employees being women, we want to listen and to be approachable.

We are open to involving people from across the socio-economic spectrum, without any form of discrimination.  

The third dot is about transparency. Bangladesh is a frontrunner in transparency regarding factory safety and value-chain responsibility. Accountability and access to information are central to building a trustworthy, flexible and resilient organization.    

The fourth dot is about infrastructure. In the last decade, we have made tremendous progress in making our factories safe, environment-friendly and employee-friendly. 

As a result, workplace mishaps have become a thing of the past in the RMG sector. But we cannot let our guard down. This underlying theme of the logo will continue to inspire us to build safe, sustainable and green factories, having modern safety and security apparatus.    

The fifth dot signifies encouragement. To encourage us to innovate, which is key to our survival. The fourth industrial revolution has accelerated the process of automation and virtual prototyping. In order to keep up with the global trend, significant investment in skill development and R&D is already taking place in factories. 

While individual factories are working on their own to innovate and design high-end products for exports, BGMEA has set-up a 'Centre for Innovation, Efficiency and OSH', which will cater to the industry's quest for innovation and perfection.   

The sixth dot is about circularity, which is very important for the conservation of our natural ecosystem. As an eco-conscious industry, we are increasingly focusing on shifting from a linear system to a circular system. 

Manufacturers, buyers and recyclers are making concerted efforts to collect and reuse textile waste in Bangladesh.  

The seventh dot is about strengthening our global network. It will motivate us to strive to be ahead in the world through innovation, pivots and flexible adaptations. 

Branding Bangladesh is the focus of the eighth dot of BGMEA's new logo. Its aim is to convey what BGMEA represents and the vital role it plays in representing and branding Bangladesh to the world.  

And the ninth dot represents protecting the environment. It is a symbol of the respect BGMEA has for nature and its dedication to preserving the natural ecosystem.  

This nine-dot logo is the matrix of BGMEA's scope of work and influence. We have arranged the dots in columns, sequentially, to portray our journey from micro to macro, from action to impact, and from local to global. It is an organic transformation. 

The connection continues when we look at the nine dots in rows. The first three dots emphasise 'reach', second three dots emphasise 'transformation' and the third three emphasise 'sustainability'. These are nine dots and together they represent the BGMEA's new identity. 

The RMG sector still has some distance to go, but the rewards are great. The global market trend exhibits huge opportunities for Bangladesh to expand its market share. It seems like the tide is in Bangladesh's favour in the international market. 

Besides, the level of progress we have made so far puts us in an advantageous position to expand our global market share. What we have to do is to keep up our efforts to innovate, upgrade, and diversify. 

The day is not far away when we will be able to set an annual export target of $100 billion from this vital sector. 

Faruque Hassan is the president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA)