Over 220 brands, currently sourcing apparel products from the country, have already signed the 2018 Transition Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh. Over 180 global apparel brands have warned the Bangladeshi government that any premature shutdown of the Accord might lead them to reconsider the nation as a sourcing destination. The Bangladesh government implements a sustainable and adequate national regulatory structure to regulate workplace safety in its garment industry. Acknowledging progress on safety compliance, compact partners stressed that the remediation coordination cell (RCC) is at its earliest stages of development.
The government has recommended that the Accord needs to continue its operations in Bangladesh until the RCC is ready. In the last five years, the Accord has delivered a robust, high-quality, transparent and inclusive system. It has made substantial progress to achieve the safety of workers in Bangladesh’s most important export industry, but the national structure is not prepared yet to credibly take over the work of the Accord.