Garment factories in Bangladesh, which contribute 90% of the country’s exports, reopened on Wednesday, raising hopes of resuming full operations soon after production was disrupted by violent protests that ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina this week.
Sheikh Hasina resigned on Monday and fled the country after nearly 300 people were killed and thousands injured in a crackdown on student-led protests that had been going on since July.
Garment and textile factories supplying major Western brands such as H&M, Zara and Carrefour were forced to close due to the curfew.
“We lost a total of four days, it’s too early to estimate the losses. There is very little physical damage to factories,” Miran Ali, vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), told Reuters.
“I am hopeful that in the next few days we will see a complete normalcy,” he said. “I am confident that our buyers will stand by us.”
He said H&M, which buys from about 1,000 factories in Bangladesh, had already said it would not seek discounts because of the delays. The world’s second-largest fashion retailer told Reuters on Wednesday that its suppliers’ factories were gradually reopening and it welcomed steps taken in Bangladesh for greater sustainability.
At the garment manufacturer Urmi Garments’ factory in Dhaka, mainly female workers were again operating sewing machines.
“We are poor people who depend on daily wages and overtime. How will we be able to run our families if we sit at home?” Razia Begum, 38, a factory worker, told Reuters.
Factory manager Imdadul Haque said the factory had lost 228,000 units, worth $107,000. In total, Urmi, whose clients include H&M, Japan’s Uniqlo and Britain’s Marks & Spencer, has lost about $2.2 million across the three units, he said.
Though factories are reopening, some business could suffer. Hula Global, an Indian apparel maker serving Western clients, said on Monday it would shift production from Bangladesh to India for the rest of this year to avoid the risk.
Pankaj Tuteja, Mumbai-based operations head at Dragon Sourcing, which helps companies find suppliers, told Reuters that while he expected big brands such as Zara and H&M to remain in Bangladesh, some companies that are looking elsewhere may stay away.
“Once customers and then factories invest so much time and money, they are not going to come back immediately, even if there is political stability. This could have long-term implications for Bangladesh,” Tuteja said.
Tuteja said Bangladesh remains attractive as costs there are 15-25% lower than other places and tariffs are zero.
The International Monetary Fund expects the ready-made garment industry to account for 90% of Bangladesh’s $55 billion annual exports in fiscal year 2024.
Bangladesh was the world’s third-largest garment exporter last year, according to the World Trade Organisation.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)