Tag Archives: Export diversification

After it graduated from Least Developed Country status in July 2016, Cambodia’s economy has remained healthy with a GDP growth rate of 6.9 per cent in 2017. This was driven by the recovering tourism sector, the ongoing construction boom and the gradual emergence of non-textile exports.

Export diversification has proven to be a formidable task for Bangladesh. If anything, export concentration—more specifically, dependence on readymade garments (RMG)—has increased further.

Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute has identified product and market concentration, lower productivity of workers and lack of mid-level professionals as major challenges for the readymade garment business in Bangladesh.

Despite an impressive growth of our Gross Domestic Product over two decades, the contribution of exports to GDP remains disappointing low, and is on a declining trend for a few years now.

Experts and trade leaders on Thursday demanded the same facilities including bonded warehouse scheme the readymade garment sector now enjoy for all other sectors to facilitate export diversification and boost economic growth of the country.

Bangladesh faces a tremendous challenge. How will it provide jobs for the 20 million young people set to join the labor force over the next decade? In the past, the country relied on the garment sector to drive its economy and exports, as well as to employ many workers. This was successful in many ways. Today, Bangladesh is the world’s second largest producer of ready-made-garments in the world, and apparel comprises 83% of Bangladesh’s exports.

'Export diversification would be possible only when adequate and appropriate policy support is provided to all export-oriented industries'. Speakers on Thursday said that in order to diversify the country’s export basket, export-oriented businesses should be given the policy support that has proved highly successful in bringing vibrancy to the country’s RMG sector.