Bangladesh's garment industry, the backbone of the nation's economy, is teetering on the edge of a liquidity crisis, and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has sounded the alarm.
The association has urged the government to release Tk 5,700 crore in cash incentives immediately, warning that delays are strangling factories and threatening export capacity.
The plea came during a tense meeting on Wednesday with Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury at the Secretariat.
In a statement, BGMEA warned that the current backlog of incentives is pushing factories to the brink, threatening jobs and the nation's export earnings.
BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan described the industry as being in a "fragile state," citing stalled incentives, acute working capital shortages, and persistent bureaucratic hurdles that are choking business operations.
Khan revealed that cash incentives for FY2025-26 remain mired in audit procedures at lien banks and Bangladesh Bank, leaving factories scrambling for survival.
He called for a shift from the slow quarterly release system to immediate disbursement upon application, warning that every day of delay threatens production and employment.
BGMEA Vice President Md. Shihab Uddoja Chowdhury highlighted another crisis point: loan rescheduling. While banks restructure loans to manage non-performing ratios, they often fail to provide the working capital needed to keep factories running.
He proposed a "win-win" approach, combining rescheduling with immediate working capital support - a recommendation the Finance Minister reportedly backed.
Describing the sector as the "backbone of the economy," Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury urged BGMEA to submit a detailed list of obstacles and actionable recommendations within a week, promising full policy support to remove bottlenecks and sustain growth.
The BGMEA delegation included Senior Vice President Enamul Huq Khan, Vice President (Finance) Mizanur Rahman, Vice Presidents Vidya Amrit Khan and Md. Shihab Uddoja Chowdhury, alongside several board directors.
President Mahmud Hasan Khan assured the Finance Minister that the association would submit concrete, practical recommendations to unlock production capacity and restore momentum to the sector.
The Finance Minister reaffirmed the government's commitment to the industry, pledging all-round support to protect jobs, stimulate growth, and keep Bangladesh's garment exports competitive on the global stage.
