The Ready Made Garment (RMG) industry in Bangladesh is on the brink of a crisis. This crisis is precipitated by a number of factors, including the emergence of global recession and lack of attention to the effects of the latest round of World Trade Organization (WTO) talks on the industry in S.E. Asia and the imminent termination of the Multi-Fiber Agreement in December 2004. Media attention has focused on the economic consequences of the crisis on the factory owners but little attention has been given to the rights of the displaced workers affected by factory closures. 

The garment industry in Bangladesh opened the door to mass integration of unskilled women into the formal labour force of the country. Women's labor built this industry and they will be the ones to pay the price for the crisis. According to national statistics, in 1998-1999 approximately 1.5 million workers were employed in 2,963 factories of which 90% were women. For the said year, RMG export value was US$ 4,019.98 million, representing 75.67% of the country's total export earnings, the largest source of foreign currency accumulation in Bangladesh. 

Statistics on the numbers of factory closures and the displaced workers are unreliable. Nevertheless, it is clear Bangladesh is losing its market share. Caribbean countries now enjoy duty-free and quota-free access to the American market, India and Pakistan have been given concessions by the U.S. for their cooperation in the "war on terrorism", and China, as a new member of the WTO, dominates the RMG market in the region. 

Given these circumstances, Nari Uddug Kendra (NUK) has spearheaded the development of an alliance with NGOs, trade unions, garment workers organizations, and other associations that are concerned about the rights of garment workers. Twenty-four organizations have joined force to form the Bangladesh Garment Workers Protection Alliance (BGWPA). These organizations have invested their time and resources to ensure that the rights of the workers are protected and their voices heard in the discussions on solutions to the crisis in the RMG sector.

Ninety percent of the garment workers are young women who have few marketable skills and are predominantly migrants from the countryside. The wealth generated by the RMG industry was won on the backs of their labor. In spite of their contributions to the building of the industry, they have little access to decision-making bodies at the government or corporate levels. The alliance was formed to help provide that voice, directly and indirectly, and to mobilize government, businesses, trade unions, workers organizations, non-governmental organizations and communities to work together to protect and promote the rights of the garments workers, particularly in light of the prevailing crisis in the industry. 

BGWPA is a non-partisan affiliation of non-governmental organizations, trade unions, workers organizations and other groups as well as individuals and activists concerned with the plights of garment workers. Its purpose is to protect and promote the rights of garment workers. Its goal is to give voice to garment workers concerns at a time of market uncertainties and to ensure that the garment workers situation and issues are taken into consideration in any solution to the crisis proposed by government and /or business.

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• Local and International Communication
• Legal Rights and Compensation
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• Funding and Management