The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) of Bangladesh has increased its export target for FY 2020-21 by 13 per cent. The bureau has set a $37.44-billion export target for the year for expects exports to reach $33 billion by the end of current fiscal year, 2019-20. The initial target for the outgoing fiscal was $45.50 billion.

As per the target, the ready-made garment (RMG) sector will contribute more than 82 percent. Additionally service export will contribute $7.6 billion. The apparel industry has witnessed 82 percent and 62 percent negative growth in April and May respectively this year compared to last year’s April and May. Total export earnings during July-May fell b by 17.99 percent to $30.99 billion, from $33 billion in the same period of last fiscal year.

Bangladesh fetched $34.13 billion from RMG export in FY ’19 marking 11.49-per cent growth over that in FY ’18. The compound annual growth rate of apparel export in the past five years has been 6.86 percent.

The export sectors need government policy support to overcome the pandemic’s impact and sustain, she opined. According to the business leader, such a decline has not yet been detected in the history of the industry. Exports fell $6.6 billion in the current fiscal year, close to a fifth of last year. The RMG sector experienced a 4.6 billion export decline in the just three months from April to June 2020, exacerbating the impact of COVID-19 on the industry.