‘$95b RMG exports by 2030 possible, if MMF potential tapped’

Business Desk :
Bangladesh could earn US$95 billion by 2030 from readymade garment (RMG) export, if the country can raise its manmade fibre (MMF)-based garment shipment along with the existing cotton-made items, according to a research paper.
Bangladesh would need to achieve 12 per cent and 20 per cent of the global MMF and cotton-based items’ market share respectively for the said amount of export, it showed.
Bangladesh now captures less than 5.0 per cent and 16 per cent market share of the global MMF-based and cotton-based apparel goods respectively.
At present, almost half of the total global apparel exports are MMF products, while 42 per cent are cotton-based. In contrast, 72 per cent of Bangladesh’s garment exports are cotton-based, while only 24 per cent are MMF.
In 2021, the global apparel market size was $440 billion, of which MMF-based apparel market was $222 billion or 51 per cent, and cotton-based was $190 billion or 42 per cent, it showed.
Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID) Chairman Dr M A Razzaque disclosed these statistics in his paper at a workshop – ‘Man-Made Fibre for Moving up the Value Chain of RMG in the Context of LDC Graduation’ – held in the city on Tuesday.
The workshop was jointly organised by Support to Sustainable Graduation Project (SSGP) of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
Planning Minister M A Mannan was present as the chief guest at the workshop, chaired by ERD Secretary Sharifa Khan.
Ministry of Commerce Additional Secretary Noor Md Mahbubul Haq, and BGMEA President Faruque Hassan attended as special guests.
Director of BGMEA Asif Ashraf gave a presentation on ‘Challenges in Production and Use of MMF in RMG and Expectations of the Private Sector’.
Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank (BB) Kazi Rafiqul Hassan, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Executive President Mohammad Hatem, and Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) Director Syed Nurul Islam also spoke on the occasion.
The RAPID chairman said the MMF items’ demand is rising globally due to uncertainty in cotton production and supply, price comparability, environmental concerns, and use of pesticides and huge quantity of water.