Bangladesh’s commerce minister Amir Khosru Mahmod Chowudhry has said he intends to ask the Industries Ministry to set a specific timeframe for the relocation of Harazibagh’s tanneries to the planned dedicated zone.

Speaking at the ‘Prospect of Leather Industry in the Global Context’ – an event organised in Harazibagh by the Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather Goods and Footwear Exporters Association (BFLLFEA) - the minister said the absence of such a framework meant the relocation was constantly being put back.

Chairman of the newly elected executive committee of BFLLFEA Rezaul Karim Ansari asserted that the country had the potential earn Tk four to five thousand crore in foreign exchange through leather goods, provided the necessary resources were in place first.

He also urged the creation of a leather industry policy and called for increase in the cash incentive for finished leather goods exports to be increased from the current level of 10% to 15%, in line with leather goods exporters. At the meeting, the minister also took the opportunity to announce the formation of an inter-departmental government committee, aimed at reducing Customs red tape for the leather industry.