A discussion meeting was held on18 May 2026 at Shram Bhaban between leaders of BGMEA and Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments Inspector General (Additional Secretary) Md. Farhad Siddique to discuss the renewal of licenses for garment factories, the realities of SME factories, and industry-friendly solutions.

The meeting, held at Shram Bhaban, under the leadership of BGMEA Senior Vice President Inamul Haq Khan. Among those present were BGMEA Vice President Mohammad Rafique Chowdhury and Joint Inspector General of DIFE Md. Matiur Rahman, along with other relevant officials.

During the meeting, BGMEA leaders congratulated the newly appointed Inspector General Md. Farhad Siddique and wished him success in promoting industrial development and ensuring a worker-friendly environment.

Speaking at the meeting, Inamul Haq Khan said BGMEA remains committed to complying with factory laws and safety regulations. He emphasized the need for practical solutions that allow the industry to continue operating while maintaining coordination with compliance frameworks such as RSC, NIRAPON, and National Action Plan (NAP).

He warned that suspension of license renewal could lead to factory closures, job losses, and negative impacts on exports. Therefore, he stressed the importance of coordinated efforts among all stakeholders to ensure compliance improvements while keeping factories operational.

He also mentioned that the current government has taken initiatives to gradually reopen factories that had been shut down in previous years. In this context, he urged necessary measures to restart recently closed garment factories and said BGMEA would extend all possible cooperation to the government in this regard.

Mohammad Rafique Chowdhury highlighted the current realities surrounding garment factory license renewal. He noted that out of approximately 1,500 factories under NAP monitoring supervised by DIFE, around 300 factories are currently operating in Dhaka and Chattogram. The requirement of full implementation of the Corrective Action Plan (CAP) is creating challenges in the license renewal process, especially for SME factories operating in rented or older infrastructure, where immediate compliance with all parameters is difficult.

He further said factories that had their licenses renewed last year and are continuing remediation and compliance improvement activities should be considered for conditional renewal this year, taking the practical realities into account. He added that BGMEA is already working on a plan to gradually relocate SME factories to compliance-based industrial zones.

BGMEA leaders also pointed out that although the recent amendment to the labour law extended factory license renewal validity from one year to five years, renewal at the field level is still being issued for only one year. In response, Md. Farhad Siddique said the process is underway and the five-year renewal will be implemented once the required fees and procedural matters are finalized.

He assured that factories whose licenses were renewed last year would be positively considered for renewal. He also stated that as the government is working to reopen closed factories, DIFE will provide maximum support to keep existing industrial units operational. At the same time, he emphasized that DIFE inspectors should work in a more guideline-based and coordinated manner to ensure an industry-friendly environment.