Bangladesh to buy from Thailand, China, other eastern countries
VognoDuut 405
Thursday September 09 2004 23:27:46 PM BDT
Ronnie Hossain from USA
Mr. Larry Chowdhury's rebuttal- Thanks Mr. Asghar
Selim Sher why we cannot buy from Thailand, China and other eastern countries?
More over we don't have that much defecit with those countries. Plus Thailand
is helping Bangladesh building 8 mile express highway in Dhaka.
Does India help us like this? Only these Bania bha-RAT people knows how to take
money and keep you in flint stone age. I like to see bangladesh have Meg Lav
Train by the help of china and Germany. We don't want to be Bhutan or Nepal.
Regards
Ronnie
Sulphur
USA
Torpedo
Nation builders ignored
12, 000 garment units in Gaibandha with export potential limping due to
loadshedding, lack of capital
Rafique Sarker and Rezaul Hoque from Gibandha
Rangpur: Unbelievable though, about 12,000 garments units in a Gaibandha
upazila having export potential are now limping due to lack of government
attention.
The factory owners need financial assistance on easy terms terms and
uninterrupted power supply.
They moved different quarters for soft loan and to the Rural Electrification
Board (REB) to ensure smooth power supply, but in vain.
Over the years, about 8000 small, 2000 medium and 2000 are large garments
factories have grown at Kochashahar and Nayarhat in Gobindaganj upzila in
Gibandha district. These employ about 75,000 people. About 90 percent people
of the union are directly or indirectly involved with the factories in
addition to their farming occupation for the last ten years.
Kochashar is about 10 km east of Gobindaganj and 20 km southwest of Gibandha
Sader upzila.
There were some cottage sweater industries at Kochashahar during the
seventies and eighties. Workers then used to weave woolen cloths in
handlooms.
After nineties, the situation changed with supply of electricity by Gibandha
Polli Biddut Samity. Powerlooms replaced handlooms.
In addition to agriculture, the people started knitting woolen clothes in
power looms and marketing those.
The number of units is now about 12000, according to the Nayarhat and
Kochashahar Shilpo Malik Samiti.
"Two thirds of the woolen clothes are supplied to different parts in the
country from Kocharshahor and Nayarhat every winter", said Shafiqul Islam,
owner of TS Garments.
Talking to the Daily Star correspondents during a visit on Tuesday,
President of Nayarhat Shilpo Malik Samiti Mizanur Rahman said, "Our workers
are efficient enough to produce export quality woolen clothes. But we can
not do that due to lack of funds and government patronisation."
Saiful Islam, proprietor of Sunny Hosiery at Kochashahar said BNP legislator
elected from the constituency had tried for government steps for export of
woolen clothes from there, but no step has yet been taken yet.
Shahadur Islam, president of Kochashahar Shilpo Malik Somiti said, "Load
shedding and fund crisis are our main problems".
Most of the factory owners can not continue production round the year for
lack of capital, they said. The factories run only for three months because
of fund crisis, they added.
"If we have sufficient capital, we can produce clothes and employ workers
round the year," said Mofazzal Hossen Kopalya, owner of Milon Hosiery at
Nayarhat.
There is a branch of Rajshahi Krishi Unnyan Bank in Kochashahar Bazar. This
is the only bank that is giving financial support to the factories.
"Only 10 percent factory owners are getting bank loan facilities," said
Shaiful Islam. Most of the factory owners run business by borrowing money
from moneylenders at high rates.
An official of RAKUB at its Gibandha Regional Office said the bank can not
sanction loan without collateral. The collateral they wan to mortgage with
the bank is of lesser value than the loans they want, the official said.
Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) finances some of
the factories. But the amount is too little to serve the purpose. The cost
for loan is very high. Loans can be obtained after so much of lobbying and
bribe, they alleged.
Grameen Bank is financing some of the small factories. "The payment schedule
of Grameen Bank is difficult for us to follow," said Abdus Sattar,
Organizing Secretary of Kochashahar Shilpo Malik Somiti.
He said Grammen Bank wants payment in weekly installment but factory owners
want monthly installment because sales proceeds can not be collected weekly.
Earlier the leaders of Kochashahar Shilpo Malik Somiti and Nayarhat Shilpo
Malik Somiti met authorities of Gibandha Rural Electrification Board (REB)
and requested them to ensure power supply for at least 16 hour a day from
July to September as this is the peak production season.
But REB could not ensure this.
"We are facing at least 12 hours' load shedding a day now. It hampers our
production", said Abdus Sattar.
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