Experts at a seminar highlighted the needs of a systemic transformation to achieve the transition to a circular economy, mentioning that the global economy is now only 7.2% circular; and it's getting worse year on year-driven by rising material extraction and use.
They said the plastic industry shows promise with a huge growth potential in the domestic market and opportunity to grab a share in the global market.
Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BPGMEA) and the British Standards Institution (BSI) jointly organized the seminar on "CE to Enhance the Export Possibilities of Plastic Goods" today at the BPGMEA conference room at Paltan Tower in the capital.
The keynote paper was presented by Dr. Jane Gilbert, circular economy expert of British Standards Institution (BSI) presented keynote paper while BPGMEA president Shamim Ahmed presided over the seminar. Syed Anwar Hossain, project manager, UK-Bangladesh Standards Partnership Initiative, gave a presentation on Standards Partnership Bangladesh.
BPGMEA senior vice president KM Iqbal Hossain, Secretary General Narayan Chandra Dey also addressed.
Dr. Jane Gilbert in her keynote paper said that to promote national action plan on circular economy, there is a need to achieve the sustainable development goals, work towards for the prevention, reduction and elimination of plastic pollution, to promote sustainable production and consumption of plastics through product design and environmentally sound waste management. "We need a systemic transformation to achieve the transition to a circular economy. The global economy is now only 7.2% circular; and it's getting worse year on year-driven by rising material extraction and use.
The plastic industry shows promise with a huge growth potential in the domestic market and opportunity to grab a share in the global market," she added.
Gilbert also said that after LDC graduation in 2026, Bangladesh would have to adopt International standards for goods and services to enhance export.
BPGMEA President Shamim Ahmed said that as the country develops, the use of plastic would increase.
"To reduce the use of plastics, we need to innovate and manage plastic properly."
He also said that investment and infrastructural development is required for waste management, adding that the government is implementing circular economy in the country.
Abdur Rahman, joint secretary (EC4J), Ministry of Commerce, Md. Salim Ullah, senior assistant secretary, Ministry of Industries, Anwar Hossain, Bengal Group of Industries, Salahuddin Shikder, PRAN-RFL Group, BPGMEA director and managing director of BPCL Khadem Mahmood Yusuf, BSTI Director Zohra Sikder, Mustain Billah from EC4J, SM Arafat from UNIDO participated in the open discussion.