Bangladesh has launched a fresh attempt to redraw its export map. On September **, ****, the Commerce Ministry disclosed that it is preparing separate export strategies for ** key trading destinations, assessing market potential, trade barriers, competing suppliers, promising products, and the policy actions needed to win greater market share. The initiative spans established and emerging markets from the US, UK and France to China, India, Japan and Brazil, with Australia, New Zealand and Fiji treated as one Oceania profile.
For the textile and apparel industry, however, the numbers show how difficult that diversification will be. RMG exports stood at $**.** billion, about Tk *.** trillion (~$**.** billion) in FY****–**, accounting for **.** per cent of Bangladesh’s $**.** billion merchandise exports, worth roughly Tk *.** trillion (~$**.** billion). According to TexPro, the top ** apparel destinations still commanded **.** per cent of Bangladesh’s apparel trade, barely changed from **.** per cent in FY****–**. The challenge, therefore, is no longer simply finding more countries willing to buy Bangladeshi garments. Real diversification will require changing both where Bangladesh sells and what its textile and apparel industry sells.
Table *: Bangladesh apparel export concentration and diversification indicators, FY****–** to FY****–**.
