Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Faruque Hassan has emphasised the need for continued cooperation of the European Union to support Bangladesh in securing a smooth and sustainable economic transition.
Presenting a keynote at a conference on “EU-Bangladesh Cooperation – Opportunities and the Bengal Tiger Economy” on Wednesday, Faruque said, “European Union is the largest trade partner of Bangladesh.
“It’s encouraging to note that our trade with the EU is growing. 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 gets from the EU under the GSP scheme.”
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.
EIAS Director Lin Goethals made the welcome remarks at the programme, while Ambassador of Bangladesh to Belgium Mahbub Hassan Saleh delivered the opening speech.
In his keynote speech, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan 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 added, “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 3 years extension on top of 3 years 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.”
The then pointed out, “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.
“Bangladesh has immense opportunities to enhance its exports, and the EU can play a key role in enabling Bangladesh to tap the potentials. Time is ripe for shaping the Bangladesh‐EU relationship in line with the demands of the changing times.”
Nahim Razzaq, member of Bangladesh parliament; Rensje Teerink, head of division for South Asia, European External Action Service; Advocate Tarana Halim former MP, and state minister of Post and Telecommunications; John Cornet d’Elzius, Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium; and Milan Zver, member of the European Parliament also spoke at the conference.
This event was attended by Miran Ali, vice president of BGMEA; and Matthijs Crietee, secretary general of the International Apparel Federation (IAF).
