Globally we are passing a very hard time which was not observed in our life time ever. More or less every industry is suffering. Textile industry is the main earning source of Bangladesh economy and large portion of our population is directly involved in this industry. Textile Focus editor M A Islam Riyadh talked different businessman, stakeholders regarding their observation and planning during the pandemic situation. Key discussion points are mentioned individually-
Factories have to survive until the better situation
Md. Fazlul Hoque, Managing Director, Plummy Fashions Ltd.
The export sector is very important for our economy. The sector is not likely to be better in the next two to three months to improve. Factories have to survive until the better situation. Buyers are likely to call everyone who looks appropriate, if there are only a few. However, the closed factory will not get the purchase order. Without it, if the export-oriented industry does not survive, there will be various negative effects. It may take at least six months for the situation to overcome.
The government has already announced several incentive packages to address the Corona crisis. But they need to be restructured. The packages are bank loan dependent. Loans will be given on the basis of bank-customer relationship. Banks always lend to customers in this way. As a result, in the current situation, bankers are not comfortable to give loans to most of the affected institutions. They think that if you give a loan, it will not be repaid. On the other hand, the government will borrow a huge amount of money from banks. This will lead to liquidity crisis of the bank. In the end no one but the influential businessman will get the loan. This issue should be specified.
Many people will lose their jobs, allied local industries will be closed, and the demand for various products will decrease internally, and so on. Therefore, in order to sustain the export sector, a bold allocation should be made in the policy and budget. Being allocated does not mean wasting money. After the budget, it has to be given to the victims through a specific plan. The economy has been dramatically changed due to COVID-19. We need to think properly for future investment as survival is the main challenge for us.
