Commerce, Textile and Jute and Civil Aviation and Tourism Adviser Sk. Bashir Uddin said that no misguided or emotion-driven decisions will be made in the textile sector, noting that such decisions had affected the jute industry in the past.
“We aim to achieve the export target of USD 100 billion through realistic and practical measures, not through emotions. To reach this goal, coordination among industry, academia, and policy support is essential,” he said.
He made the remarks on Thursday while addressing a seminar as the chief guest at the Jute Diversification Promotion Centre (JDPC) in Dhaka, marking National Textile Day 2025.
The seminar was held under the theme, “Resilience and Reinvention: Creating Skilled Professionals for the Textile and Apparel Sector of Bangladesh.”
Bashir Uddin said the textile sector is a commodity-based industry, with raw materials accounting for nearly 80 percent of production costs.
“The remaining 20 percent is where profits must be earned. There is no alternative to efficiency. If we fail to enhance skills, the entire industry will lag behind,” he added.
Highlighting the gap between textile education and industry requirements, he said, “Textile education is fully functional in nature, but without strong links between academia and industry, students struggle to demonstrate competency in the workplace.”
He also emphasized the country’s human resource potential, saying, “The Middle East has crude oil, and we have 180 million people. If we can refine this vast human resource through skill development, we can achieve the peak of prosperity.”
The seminar was presided over by Textile and Jute Secretary Bilquis Jahan Rimi. Textile Directorate Director General Md. Shahidul Islam delivered the welcome speech, while Dr. Mohammad Abbas Uddin, Associate Professor at Bangladesh University of Textiles, presented the keynote paper.
Secretary Bilquis Jahan Rimi said the government has undertaken multifaceted initiatives to produce skilled and future-ready manpower for the textile sector. “The ministry will take further steps to address the issues raised in the seminar,” she added.
Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) President Shawkat Aziz Russell, Additional Secretaries Arifur Rahman Khan and Subrata Shikder, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation Chairman Brigadier General Md. Kabir Uddin Sikder, Bangladesh Handloom Board Chairman Abu Ahmed Siddiqi, JDPC Managing Director Md. Zahid Hossain, senior ministry officials and industry leaders attended the event.
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