With a landslide victory in the election last weekend for the presidency of the powerful Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu, managing director of Rising Group, is now on tap to take the reins.
The win is all the more momentous as he is the leader for the Forum Panel which has largely been the underdog in terms of BGMEA leadership; the opposing Sammilito Parishad has been winning a majority of the elections for the last two decades.
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Forum did not win a single seat in the BGMEA elections held in March 2024.
However, this time it was almost a clean sweep—taking 31 out of the 35 seats listed.
Sammilito Parishad won only 4.
This was also the first time a third party entered the fray, Oikya Parishad, which fielded six independent candidates but did not win any seats.
Hasan Khan Babu is not wasting time in looking back.
Babu told Sourcing Journal on Monday that he was looking ahead, having had long experience with the BGMEA itself. “I have been very involved in BGMEA activities for many years, and it is a part of our business to focus on the industry through all situations,” he said. “We are happy that members have put their confidence in us and hopefully we will be able to carry out our duties to make the industry much stronger,” he said.
He explained that the top agenda items would include the focus on reducing the cost of business—a big concern for manufacturers.
“We would like to help the small and medium enterprises so they can survive and move forward, and to this end we will also look for refinancing and low-cost funding from the central bank. In terms of external growth, we will put pressure on the government for free trade agreements, and better coordination globally, and a very important part is also to get uninterrupted electricity and gas supply. These are just some of the things we are going to work towards,” he said.
Would the sense of animosity between the two opposing parties slow things down?
“We are friends, we are colleagues,” he said with the characteristic clarity, for which he has long been known and admired. “There was some competition during the elections, but now that is done; we are entrepreneurs trying to achieve the same goals.”
The formal announcement of the position of president will take place on June 14, as the election of the other office bearers take place—including the vice presidents of the organization.
The results will be published on June 16, when the two-year term will begin.
Industry leaders told Sourcing Journal that they were pleased with the results, that “it was good for the BGMEA” and that the “free and fair elections conducted for BGMEA boded well for the country,” which is up for national elections.
Bangladesh has long been the second largest apparel exporter in the world, after China, and events over the last year have been chipping away at the industry morale, and productivity. Apparel exports account for more than 75 percent of total exports.
In April, apparel exports showed modest 0.44 percent year-on-year growth.
“Never in BGMEA has an election board presented with such strength, transparency, and observed the rules of engagement,” said Faisal Samad, one of the winning candidates of the Forum, who has in an earlier term been the youngest vice president BGMEA, adding that he had been involved with BGMEA for the last 30 years, and participated in more than 12 elections to date.
He observed that a lot of work had gone into the preparation for the elections with the changing systems.
“The most important thing in this election was that the voter list was extremely transparent, and the voters went through a rigorous process to register,” Samad observed. “There was a lot of preparation, with an audit firm working on it. Members were excited that BGMEA would have an election without any influence, and that there were genuine voters that were there. The credit goes to the election commission to have conducted a fruitful and transparent election and all of us who participated worked together, without animosity.”
According to BGMEA election officials, 1,631 BGMEA members voted out of a total of 1,864, with 76 candidates from the three organizations taking part. Of these, there were 1,377 voters from Dhaka, and 254 from Chattogram.
In the final count, 26 representatives were elected from Dhaka and 9 from Chattogram.
“We are excited and looking forward. People were looking for change and we had a good campaign overall,” Samad said.
Industry insiders told Sourcing Journal that they were pleased with the way things were shaping up, and the fact that more than 88 percent of the industry came out for the voting in Dhaka, despite a highly vetted election process, and more than 84 percent in Chattogram, was indicative of its importance.
The elected 35 directors are Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu, Shah Rayeed Chowdhury, Mijanur Rahman, Faisal Samad, Mohammad Abdur Rahim, Inamul Haque Khan, Hasib Uddin, Vidiya Amrit Khan, Md Rezwan Selim, Shahed Udduza Chowdhury, Nafis Uddoula, Mohammad Abdus Salam, Sumaiya Islam, Anwar Hossain Chowdhury, Fahima Akter, Sheikh Hossain Muhammad Mustafiz, Majumdar Arifur Rahman, Kazi Mizanur Rahman, ABM Shamsuddin, Joardar Mohammad Hosne Quamar Alam, Asef Kamal Pasha, Rashid Ahmed Hossaini, Faruque Hassan, Rumana Rashid, Mohammad Sohel, and Samiha Azim from Dhaka region.
Those who won from Chittagong region are Salim Rahman, M Mohiuddin Chowdhury, Syed Mohammad Tanvir, Sakeef Ahmed Salam, Md Shaif Ullah, Mohammad Rafique Chowdhury, Enamul Aziz Chowdhury, SM Abu Tayyab, and Rakibul Alam Chowdhury.
Of these, Faruque Hassan is a former president of BGMEA and Rakibul Alam Chowdhury was on the previous BGMEA board.
The BGMEA elections were completed just before the Eid holidays which will begin on Thursday, with a 10-day break for Eid-ul-Adha.
Several of the elected officials have started looking ahead, unofficially, contending with the global shifts confronting the industry. One of these is the huge tariff on Bangladesh announced by U.S. president Donald Trump in April of 37 percent, the second highest among all South Asian nations and the 15th highest in the world. By comparison, neighboring countries like India were slapped with 26 percent and Pakistan 29 percent.
Not all of these issues can be solved by the BGMEA alone, but as Hasan Khan Babu had outlined while releasing the election manifesto last week, there is also much beyond the well-defined check lists.
“The garment industry is not just a business, it is a reflection of labor, sacrifice and dreams,” he said. “In today’s context, the responsibility of BGMEA should not be limited to providing certificates. We need leadership who will dig deep into the problems, find solutions and work to establish Bangladesh as a global brand.”
