Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, the European buyers’ platform, issued a statement on Thursday underlining that it may continue operating in the country.
The statement has come close on heels of Bangladesh’s Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed’s announcement that Accord would leave the country on the stipulated time (May 2018).
Accord’s statement further stated that the Bangladesh Government has settled on its continuance in the country until a monitoring committee (comprising Accord brand signatories, Accord trade union signatories, BGMEA and ILO) agrees to the ability of the ‘local body’ to fulfill the rigorous compliance conditions (set by Accord for the handover of charge).
Apparel Resources has the copy of the statement that reads: “Accord will depart Bangladesh when local regulatory body demonstrates the full capacity to inspect factories, compel remedies, and protect workers.”
The rigorous readiness conditions further include remediation of hazards, enforcement of laws against non-compliant factories, full transparency of governance, remediation progress, and investigation and fair resolution of workers’ safety complaints.
“The Accord is ready to continue operations beyond May 2018 as all parties recognize that substantial additional capacity-building is necessary before responsibility to protect workers in factories producing for Accord signatory brands can be responsibly handed over to a national regulatory body,” the statement maintained.
The agreement in this regard was reached at a meeting held on October 19 at Dhaka between Accord, BGMEA and the Government of Bangladesh, as per the statement.
The monitoring body will reportedly review the progress made on a bi-annual basis.
