Bangladesh needs effective development of the existing quality infrastructure to boost its export, experts said in a workshop in Dhaka on Saturday.
To ensure compliance with quality and safety requirement in international trade the country needs effective development of the existing quality infrastructure and coordinated technical regulation framework, they said.
Lack of quality products and services in international standards and acceptability of standards system are major weakness in export of Bangladeshi products to the international markets, they said in the workshop on National Quality Policy.
They also said that Bangladeshi products must meet regulatory and market-related quality, safety, health and environmental requirements to gain access on the international markets.
Terming the lack of coordination among ministries involved in technical regulation in standards system as the biggest challenges, they also emphasised on forming a national technical regulation coordination office for implementing the proposed National Quality Policy.
The government will have to restructure the technical regulation regime of the ministries, otherwise the country’s export will suffer in the long run, they warned.
Industries ministry and United Nations Industrial Development Organisation organised the workshop for gathering feedback from the stakeholders from public and private sectors on the proposed National Quality Policy for goods and services.
Industries ministry officials said a meeting of the core committee formed to finalise the National Quality Policy would be held on Monday (tomorrow) and then the policy would be sent for government approval.
‘Bangladesh needs effective and efficient quality infrastructure and technical regulation framework for fulfilling requirements in international trade,’ said Martin Kellermann, an international expert of UNIDO.
The government needs to modernise the existing quality infrastructures including Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institute, National Metrology Laboratory and Bangladesh Accreditation Board, he said.
‘Ministries and agencies involved in technical regulation in maintaining standards follow their own rules and practices in setting quality and which is the biggest challenge for Bangladesh in international trade,’ Kellermann said.
Industries minister Dilip Barua stressed on establishing strong regulatory system for ensuring international standards of products and services along with protecting consumer rights.
‘We have no comprehensive and coordinated regulatory framework to ensure safe and quality products both in manufacturing and marketing,’ he said.
He said finalisation of National Quality Policy would pave the way in boosting Bangladesh’s export through improvement of quality infrastructure and standards required for the international trade.
Industries secretary Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah, BAB director general Abu Abdullah, BSTI director general Iqramul Haque, Better Work and Standards Programme project director Lutfor Rahman Tarafder, head of cooperation of European Union’s delegation to Bangladesh Philippe Jacques, UNIDO chief technical adviser David Holbourne, among others, spoke in the workshop.
Representatives from different government ministries and agencies, and trade bodies also attended the workshop.
-With New Age input
