The group’s team holds meeting with govt officials
Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety Initiative, a consortium of North American clothing brands and retailers, will complete inspection of a total of 500 readymade garment factories, which supply products to them, by July next year as scheduled, labour secretary Mikail Shipar said on Sunday. He said this after a meeting with a delegation of North American Alliance at Meghna, the state guest house, in the city.
‘The American retailers group has agreed to work under common standards over the fire safety and structural integrity in the garment sector,’ Shipar told reporters.
Though two months have already elapsed after the announcement over the inspection, the Alliance delegation expressed its hope that the retailers’ group would be able to complete the factory inspection by the time it estimated, the labour secretary said.
In the meeting, the participants discussed a common code of conduct which will be used for fire and building safety inspection.
After the meeting with the officials of labour, commerce and foreign ministries, the Alliance president and chief executive officer Jeffrey Krilla said, ‘The meeting was successful and the Alliance will work for the improvement of safety standards in the Bangladeshi garment factories.’
He said that the factory inspection programme of the Alliance would be completed by July 2014.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president Md Atiqul Islam, also a board member of the Alliance, told New Age that North American buyers promised to give all-out support to ensure fire safety and structural soundness in the Bangladeshi garment factories.
Atiqul quoted the Alliance president saying that they would stay with Bangladesh for long for the purpose.
After the meeting with the government officials, the delegation met commerce minister GM Quader and home minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir at their offices.
The buyers’ representatives will meet the apparel sector leaders today at the BGMEA office to discuss their action plan in details.
After the Rana Plaza disaster which killed 1,131 workers, 17 North American retailers, including Walmart and Gap, on July 10 formed the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety Initiative undertaking a five-year plan.
Now the number of signatories has reached 20, which sets aggressive timelines and accountability for inspections, training and worker empowerment.
The Alliance promised $100 million in low-cost capital funding to improve fire and structural safety in Bangladeshi factories.
On Sunday, a 12-member delegation including Wesley Wilson, senior director for ethical sourcing of Walmart, Jan Saumweber, senior vice-president of global Walmart team, Bobbi Silten, Alliance board member and president of Gap Foundation, Daniel Duty, vice-president (global affairs) of Target, Jeff Krilla, executive director of Alliance and James Moriarty, former US ambassador to Bangladesh, held a board meeting of the Alliance at Hotel Radisson in the city.
BRAC managing director Muhammad A (Rumee) Ali, BGMEA president Atiqul Islam and former ambassador to US Humayun Kabir attended the meeting.
-With New Age input
