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by Apparel Resources News-Desk 21-September-2023 | 2 mins read
Image Courtesy : https://www.tbsnews.net/
The US Green Building Council has recently certified two additional factories in Bangladesh, awarding them both with the prestigious gold rating.
This achievement has raised the total number of LEED-certified factories in the country to 202.
Among these certified factories, 73 have earned the esteemed platinum rating, 115 have achieved the gold rating, and 10 have secured the silver rating.
Remarkably, in 2022, Bangladesh witnessed the highest number of factory certifications under the LEED programme in a single year.
Faruque Hassan, the President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), highlighted this accomplishment, noting that in 2022, 30 factories received LEED certification, comprising 15 platinum and 15 gold certifications even as moving forward to August 2023, an additional 20 factories have joined the ranks of LEED-certified establishments within the first eight months of this year.
Thirteen of these have earned the prestigious platinum rating, while seven have secured the gold rating.
Faruque also proudly announced that Bangladesh’s RMG (Readymade Garments) industry reached a milestone with 200 LEED-certified factories recognized by the US Green Building Council.
Furthermore, Bangladesh is home to an impressive 13 out of the world’s 15 highest-rated LEED Green Factories, with one standing out as the highest-rated globally even if an additional 500 factories are in the pipeline to attain LEED certification, demonstrating the industry’s commitment to sustainability.
The President of BGMEA emphasized the industry’s dedication to becoming sustainable in all aspects, with a particular focus on workplace safety, worker well-being, and environmental concerns.
He described this transformation as a testament to visionary entrepreneurship, highlighting resilience, adaptability, and a positive mindset toward meaningful changes.
More than half of top 100 LEED-certified factories globally - are now in Bangladesh
5 factories have achieved LEED certification in 2023 alone
Published : 20 Feb 2023, 05:10 PM Updated : 20 Feb 2023, 05:10 PM
Bangladesh has become the home of 51, or more than half of the world's top 100 US Green Building Council's (USGBC)-approved leadership in energy and environmental design (LEED) certified green industrial units.
On February 10, Ananta Garments and Sportswear Ltd of Ashulia in Savar received a platinum certificate from the USGBC for the Leed O+M: Existing Buildings v4.1 rating system with a score of 89.
Due to the investments on the environmentally friendly manufacturing facilities of the local manufacturers, so far 188 factories in the country's garment industry presently have Leed certification, according to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
Moreover, five factory units have already achieved LEED certification in 2023 and in 2022, a total of 30 factory units received Leed certification, the highest in a year.
Currently, the local RMG sector has consolidated its position in green manufacturing units with 64 in the platinum category, 110 in gold, 10 in silver and another 4 Leed-certified factory buildings, BGMEA stated.
An additional 550 factories are either registered or in the pipeline for USGBC's LEED certification, reported the apex body of the apparel sector.
Among top 10 LEED-certified factory units of the world, eight are from Bangladesh, a BGMEA official said.
The factory units of Bangladesh have been obtaining the Leed certificate since 2001.
The USGBC credits factory units based on several criteria including transformation performance, energy, water, and waste management and the best performers are rated with platinum, followed by gold and silver.
These criteria help green factories significantly to reduce operational costs over time even though they may initially cost more to set up, according to industry insiders.
These factories also provide a safe working environment for employees.
Experts said that Bangladesh's garment industry is now poised to take the lead globally by addressing mounting issues of sustainability, climate change, groundwater depletion and efficiency.
The growing number of green apparel factories will give Bangladesh a vantage ground to cope with EU green deals and due diligence directives stated by both the experts and the businesses.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Mohiuddin Rubel, director of BGMEA, said that at this time despite worrying about orders and exports, manufacturers are continuously branding the country through LEED-certified factories.
“Moreover, there are things like a safe workplace, employers safety which are swelling our strength. Amid the global turbulent economic situation, these brandings are serving us to cope with the losses as we are better positioned than our competitors,” he added.
He also said that the entrepreneurs are working determinedly to continue this branding which made them a better source to the buyers.
“When the world situation will be better, we will be ahead of everyone,” he added.