The 1st Bangladesh Circular Economy Summit, held at a city hotel in Dhaka, emphasized the significance of circularity as the key driver for the next phase of Bangladesh’s economic growth. Organized by the Bangladesh Apparel Exchange in collaboration with the Laudes Foundation and in partnership with P4G, the summit brought together industry leaders, policymakers, and sustainability experts to discuss the transition towards a circular economy. The event was powered by GIZ, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh, and H&M Group, showcasing the commitment of various stakeholders to foster sustainable practices.
The opening plenary of the summit featured esteemed speakers, including Md. Atiqul Islam, Mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation; Saber Hossain Chowdhury, MP and Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for Environment & Climate Change; Anne Van Leeuwen, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Bangladesh; Edimon Ginting, Country Director of the Bangladesh Resident Mission at the Asian Development Bank; Dr. Bernd Spanier, Deputy Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh; Leyla Ertur, Head of Sustainability at H&M Group; and Mostafiz Uddin, Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Apparel Exchange.
Mayor Md. Atiqul Islam stressed the importance of the “reduce, recycle, and reuse” principle in achieving sustainability goals. He highlighted the mandatory adoption of extended product or producer responsibility, as specified by the European Union, for apparel producers in Bangladesh. Mayor Islam underscored the crucial role of promoting circular fashion within the country.
Saber Hossain Chowdhury, MP and Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change, highlighted the unsustainability of a linear economy that relies on production, consumption, and disposal. He called for a shift to a circular economy that maximizes resource utilization and value extraction from products during their lifecycle. Chowdhury emphasized the importance of creating win-win business cases for manufacturers and buyers to accelerate the adoption of circular practices.
Ambassador Anne Van Leeuwen emphasized the shared vulnerability to climate change between the Netherlands and Bangladesh as countries with extensive deltas. Acknowledging Bangladesh’s remarkable progress in economic and social development, she expressed optimism about the country’s potential to become a leader in the circular economy.
Leyla Ertur, Head of Sustainability at H&M Group, urged the fashion industry to expedite its transformation toward circularity to address pressing challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss. Recognizing Bangladesh’s distinction as the country with the highest share of pre-consumer textile waste available for recycling, Ertur highlighted the potential to attract investments for scaling up the production of high-value recycled fibers. She also emphasized the need for advancing policies to regulate the waste handling sector.
Mostafiz Uddin, Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Apparel Exchange, stated that the summit aimed to explore opportunities for transitioning from a linear to a circular business model. Uddin highlighted the significance of collaboration among stakeholders to promote a circular economy in Bangladesh.
The summit encompassed four plenary sessions, three keynote presentations, three additional presentations, a roundtable discussion, and a fireside chat. These sessions featured renowned speakers who shared insights on various topics, including the path toward a circular economy, circular cities, policy’s role in accelerating circularity in the apparel and textile sector, post-industrial recycling in Bangladesh, and achieving decent work in a circular economy.
The 1st Bangladesh Circular Economy Summit served as a platform to encourage dialogue, exchange knowledge, and inspire actions to drive sustainable development and economic growth in the country.
