Bangladesh's Garment-Led Growth

How Bangladesh became one of the world's largest clothing exporters, the jobs it created for women, and the safety disasters and challenges along the way.

Bangladesh is one of the world’s largest exporters of clothing, second only to China for many years. Its ready-made garment industry accounts for around four-fifths of the country’s merchandise exports.

How it grew

The industry began in the late 1970s, when a Bangladeshi company partnered with a South Korean firm, Daewoo, which trained workers. Many trained workers later founded their own factories. Growth was helped by:

Low wages and a large labour force.
Trade preferences: quotas under the international Multi-Fibre Arrangement limited exports from larger producers, giving Bangladesh an opening, and duty-free access to the European Union under schemes for least developed countries.
Bonded warehouses and special arrangements allowing duty-free imports of fabric for export production.

Jobs for women

The garment industry employs around 4 million workers, a majority of them women. Research found that access to factory jobs led girls to stay in school longer and delayed early marriage, as families saw value in education for factory work. Factory work gave many women their own income for the first time.

Tragedy and reform

In April 2013, the Rana Plaza building near Dhaka, which housed several garment factories, collapsed, killing over 1,100 workers. It was one of the deadliest industrial disasters in history. Afterwards, global brands and unions signed the Accord on Fire and Building Safety, which led to inspections and repairs across many factories. Safety improved significantly.

Challenges

Low wages: minimum wages remain among the lowest in major exporting countries, and wage protests have occurred.
Dependence on a single industry.
Graduation from least developed country status, planned for 2026, may end some trade preferences.
Automation and competition from other low-cost producers.

A daughter stays in school

A family in a rural village sees nearby factory jobs requiring basic literacy. Instead of marrying their daughter off young, they keep her in school so she can later get a better-paid factory job. Research by Rachel Heath and Mushfiq Mobarak found this pattern: the growth of garment jobs increased girls' schooling and delayed marriage.

Thinking garment jobs are only exploitation

Garment work can involve low pay and poor conditions, and disasters like Rana Plaza show real dangers. But for millions of women, factory jobs have meant income, independence and better options than the alternatives. The goal is better conditions, not eliminating the jobs.

Key takeaways

Ready-made garments make up around four-fifths of Bangladesh's merchandise exports.
The industry employs around 4 million workers, most of them women.
Garment jobs increased girls' schooling and delayed marriage.
The 2013 Rana Plaza collapse led to major safety reforms.