The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) present an opportunity to bring countries and citizens together to transform the world and improve people's lives. Yet, one cannot speak about the SDGs without mentioning SDG financing. With trillions of dollars in resources, the private sector has a significant role in achieving SDGs and the 2030 Agenda. This report outlines the responsibility that business entities have to exercise sustainable business practices. The more business grows, the higher the demand for sustainability.
Nevertheless, companies have changed their business objectives from solely profit to a shared value approach by engaging with communities, governments and other stakeholders to foster sustainable development. One of the key actors in the private sector in Bangladesh is the readymade garments (RMG) industry.
For the past three decades, Bangladesh has been the second largest exporter of RMG products globally, exporting to over 132 countries. Exports were estimated to double from 2010 to 2015 and nearly triple by 2022. For the first time in the financial year 2018-2019, total RMG exports in the country have crossed the 34.13 USD Billion mark, an 11.49% increase.
The RMG industry in Bangladesh is now facing the fundamental challenge of adopting sustainable business practices amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has a far-reaching effect on businesses in almost every part of the world. Globally, demand for apparel is shrinking, and 99% of apparel factories have to reduce their operational capacity.
Through relevant business disclosures, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), with technical support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Bangladesh and Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), have come together to outline the impact of the RMG sector on Bangladesh National Priority Indicators (NPIs) and SDGs.
As such, instead of only measuring the financial performance of their business, the 47 factories involved in this report took business decisions based on their impact on the environment and people, among other sustainability priorities. The approach aims at aligning business-relevant sustainability data with NPIs and SDGs. In other words, the existing business reporting standards, indicators and indexes are translated in the language of NPIs and SDGs.
This report illustrates the actions RMG businesses took to progress towards the SDG targets, the challenges the sector is still facing, and what it would take to overcome said challenges and make a more significant impact on NPIs and SDGs. It also showcases how the RMG sector contributes to the country's macroeconomic performance and the country's NPIs and SDG targets. The report did so through business disclosures linked to SDGs and shared voluntarily by 47 factories participating in the study.