1
Executive Summary:
This report is based on exportation of leather and leather goods. Bangladesh is
contributing only 2/3 percent of the total leather among the other country of the world. Bangladesh has the huge potential of export more leather with high quality in the international
market. Bangladesh has the cheap labor, huge raw material and other aspect that required for a high quality leather exporting country. Government steps are needed to flourish this sector. In this report we try to focus on current scenario of the leather industry. We also try to find out the
prospects and problems for the leather industry. Lastly we suggest some recommendations which can vitalize the industry.
2
Industry Profiles:
The first tannery in Bangladesh territory was set up at Narayanganj by RP Saha sometime
in the 1940s. It was later shifted to Hazaribag area of Dhaka, which turned into a location that now accommodates a large number of tannery units. Leather Industry developed in Bangladesh on a large-scale basis from the 1970s. About 95% of leather and leather products of Bangladesh
are marketed abroad, mostly in the form of crushed leather, finished leather, leather garments, and footwear. Most leather and leather goods go to Germany, Italy, France, Netherlands, Spain,
Russia, Brazil, Japan, China, Singapore and Taiwan. About 100 modern tannery units are now in operation in the industry. These are located mostly in the Hazaribagh area of Dhaka city. In 1998, the sector exported 178 million sq ft of leather and earned $160 million. The country’s
share in the world leather market is 2%. The export of finished products such as shoes, slippers, leather jackets, hand gloves, bags, purses, wallets, and belts also earn a sizeable amount of
foreign exchange. Bangladesh intends to increase its range of leather products to penetrate new market segments.
The country is endowed with luxurious vegetation encouraging a large livestock
population. The quality of the raw hide and skin is relatively good, as barbed wire fencing that damage the skins of animals is not used in the natural farms and fields. Black goatskin of kushtia is particularly noted for its finegrain structure and tensile strength. The tradition of humane care
of domestic animals also contributes significantly to keeping the leather quality high.
About 40% of the supply of hide and skin comes from animals slaughtered during the annual Muslim festival of eid-ul azha. In addition to daily consumption of meat, festivals,
Muslim weddings, and other celebrations yield a substantial supply of hide and skin. The tanning industry got a big boost following the government decision to promote more value addition in exports. The installed capacity for crust leather production increased. At present, it is double the
domestic supply of raw hide and skin. Investments are also made in installing new finishing capacity. The trends encourage more tanneries to produce finished leather on a commercial basis.
The government of Bangladesh provides a support to the leather industry through various
steps, including monitoring the export market, evaluating the performance of the sector by a permanent parliamentary committee, and liberal bank credit.
During the 1990s, the export market for Bangladeshi leather grew at an average of 10 – 15% per annum. The average yearly exports accounted for $225 million. Fine grain leather of
Bangladesh enjoys preferential demand in Western Europe and Japan. Low wage level and the ban on exporting wet blue leather helped the industry receive a new thrust in the country.
Environmental concerns arising out of the high concentration of production units in a small area of the older part of Dhaka city are being addressed with plans for their relocation outside the city.
Leather goods producers in Bangladesh tend to be associated only with manufacturing
and exporting. They do not have much control over downstream operations. However, the success of a number of Bangladeshi firms in attracting such brand names as Puma, Pivolinos and Hugo Boss to source from this country proves that there is ample scope for the industry’s upward
mobility.
3
Present Scenario:
At present, there are about 170 tannery units in Bangladesh and they use locally available
raw hides and skins. Of them 114 are large and medium units (by local standards) and are registered with the Directorate of Industries. Others are mostly of small and cottage type and are not on the register of the government. About 150 tannery units are located at Hazaribag of Dhaka
in only 50 acres of land popularly known as tannery estate. According to the records of the Bangladesh Tanners Association, about 3,000 workers are employed in the tanning industry.
Besides, there are about 100 qualified technologists including foreign nationals who are working in different tanneries. Total capital invested in the tannery industry is estimated at Tk 2.5 billion, of which government/bank finance is about Tk. 1.2 billion. About 1,500 persons are involved in
the process of collecting raw hides and skins and making them available at tannery units. About 100 organisations import chemicals for use in tannery industry.
Bangladesh produces approximately 100-150 million sq. feet of raw hides and skins,
about 85% of which is exported in crust and finished form. The rest is used for producing leather goods to cater to the domestic market. Leather is a traditional export item of Bangladesh. But
export earnings from this sector could not indicate any predictable increase in the past. Since the production and supply of leather depend on the availability of livestock and demand of the meat, the total supply of leather cannot be increased in the short run. Therefore, the only way of
increasing earnings from this sector is the production and export of higher value leather products for which international demand is growing. International market for leather is highly fluctuating,
hence the earnings from its export. Until 2001, annual export receipts from this sector remained below taka one billion. Some projections suggest that if properly organized, this figure could be raised to Tk 5 billion.
Country wise export data for leather and leather goods
Source for all these data is Export Promotion Bureau
2013-2014 Fiscal year total export
Products Amount in US$
Raw hides and skins (other than fur skins) and leather 505,535,546.82
Articles of leather, animal gut, harness, travel goods 240,082,385.04
Footwear, upper of leather 378,539,254.95
4
Raw hides and skins (other than fur skins) and leather
(Value in US$)
2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
AE: UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 7757 6858 62546
AR: ARGENTINA 15735
AU: AUSTRALIA 360302 170664 227490 136523 95421
BL: SAINT BARTHÉLEMY 2552086 2860240 3459511 5380911 6460046
BN: BRUNEI DARUSSALAM 24258 204286
BR: BRAZIL 16310
BW: BOTSWANA 17400
CA: CANADA 7886 3561 4673 7021
CH: SWITZERLAND 32456 8029
CM: CAMEROON 72648
CN: CHINA 9622646 9859950 13647580 22230901 30393826
CZ: CZECH REPUBLIC 1822 19765 38192 40930 20605
DE: GERMANY 1674845 1356637 3189048 2718254 2602461
ES: SPAIN 5114893 7814488 14044978 14712545 14172117
FR: FRANCE 861193 455096 466328 448096 464559
GB: UNITED KINGDOM 948573 1153071 1595894 1769081 1712136
GR: GREECE 41094 55001 292238
HK: HONG KONG 61356935 86567266 116997409 117188422 149932911
HR: CROATIA 15252
HU: HUNGARY 4921 730 22085 20841
ID: INDONESIA 177661 309453 332877 432801 944420
IN: INDIA 6982976 11366916 9631492 4777225 6218182
IR: IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF 41640
IT: ITALY 29930906 33052406 38672914 44503704 54702197
JP: JAPAN 14774284 16523830 18111626 20245026 20795882
5
KH: CAMBODIA 599755 330557 1069164 19571 453375
KR: KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 29592148 38929736 54632248 73538266 75822293
KW: KUWAIT 3182
LA: LAO PEOPLES DP 6043
LB: LEBANON 19751 6003
LK: SRI LANKA 94045 9137 40264
LU: LUXEMBOURG 22078
MM: MYANMAR 71251 94139 85369 48595 48953
MO: MACAO 18960
MU: MAURITIUS 4332 4545 2587
MX: MEXICO 1227608 495405 516762 44385 87641
MY: MALAYSIA 172051 91646 12452 14145 30486
NG: NIGERIA 5320 4822
NL: NETHERLANDS 10131 24368 699 27756 14302
NO: NORWAY 37109 42511 50621
NZ: NEW ZEALAND 3293
OM: OMAN 2254
PH: PHILIPPINES 18051 206575 764585 430059 14915
PK: PAKISTAN 189581 1633 40243 39798 718561
PL: POLAND 895673 280892 1286068 1358563 4013324
PT: PORTUGAL 55060 88490 58403 164324 1223271
RO: ROMANIA 14287 7802
RU: RUSSIAN FEDERATION 202874 57342 39414
SA: SAUDI ARABIA 656 4419 62706 7722
SE: SWEDEN 34044 119475
SG: SINGAPORE 53266 47276 287859 178229 205094
SL: SIERRA LEONE 8038
SR: SURINAME 9198
6
TG: TOGO 15857
TH: THAILAND 623629 383792 435847 377543 349587
TR: TURKEY 677206 3479256 2007153 2060616 2691739
TU: !!! Not Defined 17523
TW: TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA 3720110 5204740 7981635 6984021 12686239
UK: !!! Not Defined 41521 272739 45971 7413
US: UNITED STATES 292830 240608 231000 390179 688836
VE: VENEZUELA, BOLIVARIAN
REPUBLIC OF 2017 21819 733
VN: VIET NAM 5157687 4102852 7332153 9587904 12147111
VR: !!! Not Defined 28547 16320
ZA: SOUTH AFRICA 4568 132123 144162 30220 56258
Total 178199731 226102289 297826057 387376808 399726733
7
Articles of leather, animal gut, harness, travel goods
(Value in US$)
2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
AE: UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 2270 16851 11408 10434 41863
AT: AUSTRIA 1729 21265 26523 15468
AU: AUSTRALIA 62579 6841 62339 133273 504213
BE: BELGIUM 5326 1811 18995 2303453 5909896
BL: SAINT BARTHÉLEMY 372785 777393 1164763 797338 280562
BN: BRUNEI DARUSSALAM 204
BR: BRAZIL 7445
BT: BHUTAN 6127 11868
CA: CANADA 61437 31572 34303 29545 73191
CH: SWITZERLAND 230 20649 45101 7277
CL: CHILE 4039
CN: CHINA 3752 815247 3175027 21719656 34453518
CZ: CZECH REPUBLIC 2458 18118
DE: GERMANY 6811360 6419217 8253425 9699070 11414092
DK: DENMARK 453 3131 7650
ES: SPAIN 1559 33789 523356 1246730
FI: FINLAND 2421 1630 5191
FR: FRANCE 145411 23116 76321 159414 142129
GB: UNITED KINGDOM 177536 128323 209650 134975 338666
GR: GREECE 26286 14212
HK: HONG KONG 8290542 16324308 27008653 38508162 76222134
HR: CROTIA 105
HU: HUNGARY 1085
ID: INDONESIA 9942 68
8
IE: IRELAND 454
IN: INDIA 895 29059 22446 72597
IQ: IRAQ 607
IT: ITALY 36666 234130 8388400 10745860 7161770
JO: JORDAN 60725
JP: JAPAN 1512743 2479782 5375752 7858152 12507799
KH: CAMBODIA 34995
KP: KOREA, DEMOCRATIC PEOPLEpS REPUBLIC OF 213
KR: KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 43938 30771 68061 484613 993681
KW: KUWAIT 652 871
LK: SRI LANKA 29
LT: LITHUANIA 69470
MU: MAURITIUS 25
MV: MALDIVES 706
MX: MEXICO 48 839
MY: MALAYSIA 807 3186 19844 28519 1429
NL: NETHERLANDS 40318 106489 9382 4289 72232
NO: NORWAY 8273 3259 1486 2935
NP: NEPAL 5942
NZ: NEW ZEALAND 9073
PH: PHILIPPINES 6501 6808
PL: POLAND 12333 28174
PT: PORTUGAL 1032 16333
QA: QATAR 3756 388
RO: ROMANIA 1060
RU: RUSSIAN FEDERATION 36 512 5064 2239
SA: SAUDI ARABIA 542761 610626 249458 97053 64730
SE: SWEDEN 12146 29540 98460 133040 240850
9
SG: SINGAPORE 338581 589823 786001 930510 1276792
TH: THAILAND 303 22 21174 14959
TR: TURKEY 3817
TW: TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA 52417 133774 196387
US: UNITED STATES 209491 274084 245903 4660379 8218796
ZA: SOUTH AFRICA 1791 5796
Total 18779818 28962068 55397661 99351482 161603306
10
Footwear, upper of leather
(Value US$)
COUNTRY 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
AE: UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 428506 306971 227983 605811 962810
AR: ARGENTINA 153971 7623 48968 51121 36733
AT: AUSTRIA 5960016 4828968 4490044 5094347 3841146
AU: AUSTRALIA 6779 6167 64421 22935 55636
BA: BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 261357 209086 229168 222914
BE: BELGIUM 4005770 4620395 6198268 6108466 5152463
BG: BULGARIA 7633 3697 14615
BH: BAHRAIN 4584 881
BL: SAINT BARTHÉLEMY 59475 331296 8635
BR: BRAZIL 24614 40428 4711 60154 472994
BZ: BELIZE 559902
CA: CANADA 2181349 1586369 3676447 3426659 6782612
CH: SWITZERLAND 2413816 2229269 4418797 4440850 3786366
CL: CHILE 1623 2206 15063 190129 361016
CN: CHINA 5535 5845 1719442 1789893 5930947
CO: COLOMBIA 21124 63335 14157
CY: CYPRUS 15811 57824
CZ: CZECH REPUBLIC 2055379 798093 2246946 1547094 984922
DE: GERMANY 15696782 23630854 28365778 38852684 55744860
DK: DENMARK 371375 76959 95712 69683 28474
EE: ESTONIA 330021 160492 343524 253212 251969
ES: SPAIN 3122097 3686113 4137134 5742271 2628395
ET: ETHIOPIA 1570
FI: FINLAND 1033681 509410 749508 1228117 977444
11
FJ: FIJI 19778 70121 13195 56926
FR: FRANCE 11668870 12478197 14584615 15191524 11969751
GB: UNITED KINGDOM 4219836 5065429 5926783 2232002 4901042
GE: GEORGIA 39596 1390
GR: GREECE 340463 308635 707936 269493 495288
GT: GUATEMALA 19348
HK: HONG KONG 620156 1275415 1380047 2288686 10542860
HR: CROATIA 14163 26615 23596 96164 29566
HU: HUNGARY 15696 35964 954 60799 218286
ID: INDONESIA 164 379 1195
IE: IRELAND 282901 276887 157750 235182 283834
IN: INDIA 8745 5038 329 19840
IQ: IRAQ 14732 2871
IT: ITALY 15453290 14212092 19449768 24748874 25250348
JO: JORDAN 8342
JP: JAPAN 41939904 52233207 72425975 65530171 104773875
KE: KENYA 54805
KH: CAMBODIA 22556
KR: KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 3213408 2844035 4130615 4423242 2630469
KW: KUWAIT 964
LB: LEBANON 1036 5887 37140
LK: SRI LANKA 716 23674 14747
LT: LITHUANIA 120973 61712
LV: LATVIA 9353
LY: LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIYA 23242 178230
MA: MOROCCO 2926 5840
MG: MADAGASCAR 340
MT: MALTA 14507 61607 28600
12
MU: MAURITIUS 2604
MV: MALDIVES 6646
MX: MEXICO 14502 48876 147599 351633 447715
MY: MALAYSIA 1717 21192 80284 29486
NL: NETHERLANDS 4815755 4023693 8153422 14574449 19906258
NO: NORWAY 10563 337559 406638 419622 508549
NP: NEPAL 7511 6275
NZ: NEW ZEALAND 6695 41210
PA: PANAMA 116684 108316 178503 215912 391062
PE: PERU 4237 447045 32815
PG: PAPUA NEW GUINEA 20006 6165 2280
PH: PHILIPPINES 1882 101
PK: PAKISTAN 1010 196509
PL: POLAND 359631 27971 4028 2110903
PT: PORTUGAL 134254 129374 23196 3153
PY: PARAGUAY 311406 253155
RO: ROMANIA 2509 396 112435 308272 479079
RU: RUSSIAN FEDERATION 408 279180 173787 1287231 322489
SA: SAUDI ARABIA 868958 462580 687316 743790 418541
SE: SWEDEN 1118994 1309879 1260741 2018387 1859916
SG: SINGAPORE 3364 6331 4567 32155 192900
SI: SLOVENIA 735898 711070 844472 1367284 1224468
SK: SLOVAKIA 323037 329199 391290 612151 354522
SV: EL SALVADOR 22486
SZ: SWAZILAND 33734 740 16564 15257 21512
TH: THAILAND 48720 6453 21343 10194
TN: TUNISIA 6993
TR: TURKEY 408 10914 719295 227238 97746
13
TU: !!! Not Defined 2556 44067
TW: TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA 48835 210973 233624 377614 583457
UA: UKRAINE 958 309715
UG: UGANDA 29573
UK: !!! Not Defined 2545468 1218284 502036 4284027
US: UNITED STATES 4888465 5772229 8848036 20059748 19745274
UY: URUGUAY 2639 97836
VE: VENEZUELA, BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF 1279 60291 35589
VN: VIET NAM 2650 1660
VR: !!! Not Defined 114034 333641
ZA: SOUTH AFRICA 44153 43005 100518 537005 788599
ZM: ZAMBIA 23347 222405 94431
TOTAL = 132164108 146467351 199388740 233983490 305112917
Chart: BTA
14
Procedure of Export:
A company or individual businessmen with trade license is capable of doing export
business. But before that he/the company has to obtain export registration certificate (ERC) from
the office of Chief Controller of Import and Export (CCI&E), 111-113 Motijheel Commercial
Area, Dhaka. Generally Trade License, Bank Balance Certificate, Membership from respective
trade associations is required for obtaining ERC.
To get Export Registration Certificate (ERC) you have to apply to the Office of the Chief
Controller of Import and Export (CCI&E) in prescribed form. Along with the application you
have to submit the following documents:
Copy of trade license
Nationality certificate issued by Ward Commissioner or Union Parishad Chairman (for
Bangladeshi nationals)
Income tax payment certificate of the previous year (in applicable cases)
Valid membership certificate from the Chamber of Commerce or Registered Trade
Association
Bank solvency certificate
Partnership deed or Incorporation certificate
Photograph – 2 copy.
For starting a business in Bangladesh, it starts with registering the company name at the
Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies & Firms. The office is located at 24-25
Dilkusha, Commercial Area, Dhaka. This Office accords registration of Companies, Associations
and Partnership Firms under the Companies Act, other related acts, rules, orders and ensures
lawful administration of them.
The new entities should also obtain trade license from the city corporation where it is located
Exporter has to obtain quality assurance certificate
15
The exporter can export with or without Letter of Credit (LC). The Contract/ Agreement
with foreign buyer or CAD or Advance TT methods etc. are also allowed for export. The
exporters then submit EXP form to bank and prepare bill of export. With all these documents
exporters then approach at the customs authority of the port through which they want to ship his
exportable. After examining all the papers the customs authority allows them to export and after
boarding the products the authority gives them a bill of lading. After shipment the customs
authority assures them stamping a seal in the back of bill of lading and provide Export General
Manifest (EGM).
We talked to a leather company and they share about their experience of export which are given below
“When goods are export in another country firstly we receive enquiries and then send
quotation to buyer for confirmation. After confirmation of quotation we receive order from buyer
and confirm buyer by phone, email, or fax. For goods payment we negotiate to fixing the
exchange rate with buyer including goods delivery. Buyer gives us payment by Letter of Credit.
We collect the LC and start our work as the buyer want. After complete the orders arrangements
we prefer send the goods by ship vessel for low costing but if we are late to send the goods and
buyer want the delivery urgently then we deliver the goods by air (FedEx) at our own cost. In
case our goods are damaged or lost by any way our insurance company bears the loss. After
completing the order we ready to prepare our bill of exchange and total documentation at our
Bank (National Bank) then forwarding the documents and send it to buyer bank (HSBC). Buyer
bank checking our bill of exchange and other documentation and send an acceptance letter in our
bank (National Bank) against our documents for collect the bill then our bank collects the money
and sends it to our account.”
16
Prospects:
The labor-intensive leather industry is well suited to Bangladesh having low-cost and
abundant labor.
Bangladesh has a domestic supply of good quality raw material, as hides and skins are a by-product of large livestock industry.
Adequate government support in the form of tax holidays, duty free imports of raw
materials and machinery for export-oriented leather market
The industry lacks domestic technology and expertise and local support industries such as chemicals are still under-developed.
Present government is in the process of setting up of separate Leather Park relocating the
existing industry sites to a well-organized place. Leather exporters have been given 15% Duty drawback of cash incentive.
Low establishment cost.
Problems:
The Bangladesh export - oriented leather and leather goods may be characterized by:
Lack of an integrated comprehensive policy with proper inputs by all the stakeholders
such as exporters, government, suppliers and buyers
A small number of factories that have been set -up by mainly inexperienced
entrepreneurs and ever eager machinery suppliers, who have used the myth of the
buyback agreements to push their machine sales. These factories by and large have been
17
unable to get off the ground despite considerable investment in machinery and
infrastructure
Other than three or four exporters most of the factories are not engaged in regular
production and exports
A total lack of adequately trained and skilled human resources for production as well as
for managerial personnel in the leather footwear industry
No training institute or facilities for skill development
No support industry in terms of linkage factories such as lasts, cutting dies etc., so there
is a high import dependence thereby reducing price competitiveness as well as increasing
lead times
Low awareness amongst international buyers as not enough factories is working in the
industry
Poor representation in major international product fairs and shows
No design, product development or product testing capability in the country
No awareness of international quality standards such as Eco - labeling and packaging,
occupational standards and environmental management requirements and their growing
importance to foreign buyers
Insufficient co -operation & co - ordination between various regulators, policy makers
and stakeholders of the industry. In some cases duplication of efforts by various agencies
especially donors is occurring
Lack of a suitable enabling environment in the customs facilities of the country at time of
import of raw materials, due to harassment and delays in clearance
Inadequate working capital finance as most banks insist on Master L/C and back to back
L/C procedures for import. Unfortunately in today's highly competitive market most
18
buyers no longer operate on L/C. Our competitors offer much easier payment terms such
as open account, D/A basis delivery, etc.
No easy a access to the local market for exporters, making them highly vulnerable to the
perils of stock lots and cancellations. In China as well as India up to 50% of the total
output can be sold onto the local market, whilst still enjoying exporter status. In contrast,
in Bangladesh local sales are taxed at such high rates of duty which makes the price too
high for the mass market
Discrepancy in the import policy where the import duty on finished shoes and on shoe
components and accessories is almost the same, therefore there is no advantage for
manufacturers. Today the local shoe industry is being severely threatened by cheap
imports that are being smuggled and dumped from neighbouring countries such as
Myanmar and India.
Recommendations:
Government should formulate appropriate rules and regulations to support Leather and
leather-based products and footwear sectors.
To ensure sufficient and continuous power supply.
They can start joint venture business with other major leather exporting country like India and Japan.
By collaboration with EU and other developed leather importing countries they can
import advanced technology.
19
Government should take initiatives to formulate appropriate leather policies to support the sector which is aligned with the industrial, export, and investment policy and
specially strengthen e-diplomacy.
Government needed to arrange some soft loans for the industry to fight against the current financial crisis.
Government must take initiative to enhance R&D and technology transfer to the industry.
Government should take initiatives to enrich the livestock of the nation to ensure higher availability of raw-inputs.
Government needed to arrange some special funding and leather preservation facilities
for the industry in occasion of Eid-ul-Azha.
Government should take initiatives to protect lather smuggling to India.
Government should plan and built facilities to increase the value addition through increases production of finished goods.
Government has to ensure the HR development in the sector.
Government has to reduce the environment pollution level of the industry.
20
Conclusion:
Bangladesh leather industry is dominated substantially by the domestic investment which
is mostly export-oriented. The leather includes some ready-made garments, although that aspect is continued mainly to a small export-trade in “Italian-make” garments for the US market. Footwear is more important in terms of value addition. This is the fast growing sector for leather
products.
Presently Bangladesh produces between 2 and 3 percent of the world’s leather market. Most of the livestock base for this production is domestic which is estimated as comprising 1.8
percent of the world’s cattle stock and 3.7 percent of the goat stock. The hides and skins (average annual output is 150 million sq.ft.) have a good international reputation. Foreign direct
investment in this sector along with the production of tanning chemicals appears to be highly rewarding.
Having the basic raw materials for leather goods as well as for the production of leather shoe, a large pool of low cost but trainable labor force together with tariff concession facility to
major importing countries under GSP coverage, Bangladesh can be a potential off shore location for leather and leather products manufacturing with low cost but high quality
Provision of newly announced infrastructural facilities through establishment of an
integrated Leather Park and simultaneously, growth in the global demand, opportunities for investing in and setting up export-oriented leather industry in Bangladesh is definitely attractive. Foreign investors are welcome to capitalize on this opportunity.
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