A dialogue and exhibition event titled “She Leads the Weave: Advancing Gender Equity and Women’s Leadership in Bangladesh’s Ready-Made Garments (RMG) Sector” was held at Dhaka.
The event was organised by Swisscontact under the Promoting Green Growth in the Ready-Made Garments Sector through Skills (PROGRESS) project, funded by the Embassy of Sweden and the Embassy of Switzerland.
Bringing together more than 150 participants—including women supervisors, factory officials, private sector actors, advisory service providers, and development partners,—the event highlighted the importance of empowering women across all levels of the RMG workforce.
In her welcome remarks, Farzana Amin, Team Leader of the PROGRESS project mentioned that apart from being the biggest export-oriented industry, historically RMG sector has also been a space where women walked in, earned their own wages, and rearranged the power dynamics inside their homes and communities. However, women are yet to gain sufficient space in major decision-making roles within larger organisations. “We aim to design a programme that will enable young female professionals to progress from mid-level roles to senior leadership positions,” she said.
In a presentation, T M Abu Saleh, Manager- Programme of PROGRESS project stressed that “future of this sector must be competitive and resilient. But above all, it must be shared equally by the women who built it.
A segment titled “Voices from the Factory Floor” featured testimonies from women who have advanced into leadership roles, sharing both their challenges and achievements. In a panel discussion, speakers from industry and academia stressed the need for gender-responsive HR practices, cultural change, mentorship opportunities and safer, more supportive workplaces to enable women’s leadership.
Ms. Vidiya Amrit Khan, Vice President of BGMEA and Deputy Managing Director of Desh Garments Limited, participated as a distinguished panelist.
N her remarks, Ms. Vidiya Amrit Khan shared insights from her own leadership journey. “At one point, a significant part of my management team consisted of women. However, we faced challenges in sustaining this because many young women leave their jobs after marriage. This reflects a broader socio-cultural issue in our industry, and it has reinforced our commitment to creating policies and support systems that enable women to continue thriving in their careers,” she noted.
She further said that in what is a traditionally male dominated culture and industry, it is the male higher ups in the work place that have to be open to accepting women in leadership positions.
Lithe Mohiuddin, Chair of BGMEA Standing Committee on Gender Equality, also addressed the event as a panelist, highlighting the RMG industry’s vital contribution to women’s empowerment. She emphasized the importance of ensuring dignity and gender equality not only in the RMG industry but across all sectors.
The event also featured a drama performance illustrating women’s barriers and breakthroughs, along with an exhibition on gender-focused interventions.
In his closing remarks, Ikramul H. Sohel, Senior Programme Officer at the Embassy of Sweden, stated that currently only a limited number of women hold leadership roles in the RMG sector, and mentioned that the Embassy intends to increase this through its support to projects like PROGRESS and Aporajita.
