The owners of readymade garment factories in Bangladesh have sought more coronavirus bailout funds from the government to pay the workers for three months from August.

The BGMEA and the BKMEA, lobbying groups of the sector’s entrepreneurs, said in a letter to Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Aug 20 that the industry is still in a crisis due to the pandemic even though exports have bounced back.

Kamal told bdnews24.com on Wednesday that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will make a decision on the issue.

“The prime minister gave it [incentives] before they even asked for it. Their new request depends on her discretion as well. We will take steps following her instructions,” he said.

Mohammed Abdus Salam, the acting president of BGMEA, told bdnews24.com they have not resumed production in full swing. They are indeed getting new orders, but the figure is still low, he said.    

“We‘re actually exporting the products ordered in March, April and May. We‘re still in a financial crunch. We’ll be able to fully overcome the crisis if we get easy loans to pay the workers for three more months,” Salam said, adding that they were making a final request for funds.

https://bdnews24.com/business/2020/08/27/bangladesh-apparel-factory-owners-seek-more-government-incentives-to-pay-workers