CPD RMG Study Stitching a better future for Bangladesh
New Dynamics in Bangladesh’s Apparels Enterprises
The CPD‐RMG Study was motivated by a tragedy and inspired by a conviction to contribute to national and global efforts to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again. The Rana Plaza industrial disaster which had taken the lives of more than twelve hundred workers shook the global apparels value chain to its core. Consequently, all involved stakeholders across the value chain ‐ workers, entrepreneurs, brands/buyers, consumers, right‐based organizations, consumer groups, governments and sourcing countries – engaged soul‐searching, asking how such a disaster could happen and looking for measures to avoid its repetition A number of global initiatives were put in place to address the underlying reasons that led to the tragedy. A major initiative in this context was the Sustainability Compact, as part of which the government of Bangladesh had designed and a national plan of action that was implemented over the last six years. Key buyers had implemented their own plans, most notably under the Accord and Alliance‐led initiatives. Thanks to these initiatives, major restructuring and remediation initiatives were undertaken to improve the state of compliance in the apparels sector of Bangladesh which received high appreciation both nationally and globally. On their part, the enterprises also have undertaken various initiatives as part of the restructuring process. The broad-based macro and meso‐level initiatives as also enterprise-level ones have multi‐dimensional implications for enterprises, entrepreneurs and workers. As a result of the cumulative impact, apparels enterprises have experienced multi‐dimensional changes over this period, most prominently in the areas of social and economic upgrading. However, a deeper appreciation of these initiatives is needed in order to capture the initiatives of these on various dimensions of the work of the apparels value chain. The CPD‐RMG Study titled ‘New Dynamics of Bangladesh’s Apparels Enterprises: Restructuring, Remediation and Compliance Assurance’ was designed to generate insights as regards the efficacy of the various sections taken during the follow‐up period of the Rana Plaza tragedy with a view to examining the extent these initiatives have been successful in upgrading the apparels value chain.
