Economy
Sanitaryware sales hikes in rural areas
Just two decades ago, one could hardly hope to see a well-furnished bathroom in the country’s semi-urban and rural areas.
The scenario has changed over time as people living in these regions are becoming increasingly aware of good hygiene practices.
In addition, the ongoing development works and expanding electricity coverage across the country are fuelling the market for sanitaryware, according to industry insiders.
“Rapid urbanization and changing lifestyle in line with the people’s rising purchasing power is driving the market for sanitaryware,” said Kamruzzaman Kamal, director of marketing at Pran-RFL Group.
RFL makes various bathroom fittings using metal and PVC materials.
Apart from Pran-RFL Group, Raja Metal Industries, Sharif Metal Ltd and Sattar Metal Industries are major players in the domestic sanitaryware market, which industry operators have estimated to be worth more than Tk 1,300 crore.
Irfan Uddin, general secretary of the Bangladesh Ceramic Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said there are 18 factories with a total investment of nearly Tk 2,000 crore that manufacture sanitaryware in the country.
Uddin then said the total market size was valued at Tk 1,357 crore in fiscal 2021-22 and that locally made products now dominate the once import-heavy segment.
Besides, the sanitaryware industry has created more than 9,600 opportunities for direct employment, he added.
Echoing Uddin, Kamal said although the market was dominated by imports in the past, the situation changed in the last few years as some large corporations entered the business with quality products.
The director of Pran-RFL Group went on to say that the company’s sales are increasing at an average of about 15-20pc each year.
However, he said that the recent hike in the price of USD has had a negative impact on the industry as the raw materials required are mostly imported.
As such, the cost of imports has increased by some 15-20pc in the last few months but moreover, production is being disrupted by daily load shedding and low gas pressure.
“We export our ceramic bathroom fittings mainly to India but we are planning to export metal products as well,” Kamal added.
Nazrul Islam, managing director of Raja Metal Industries, which has been making and selling kitchen and bathroom faucets for local consumers since 1970, said business growth has been quite good over the years.
“Many public and private infrastructures were built in Bangladesh over the past decade and more will be set up in the days to come. So, this industry will enjoy more business in the coming days,” he added.
Islam said that load shedding is hampering production at a time when operational costs have increased 50pc while transport charges are also higher due to the recent hike in fuel and dollar prices.
“As a result, there has been a negative impact on the business,” Islam said, adding that local consumers prefer foreign products.
“When they come across a local product, they ask for discounts, warranties, guarantees and what not because they think local products are not good.”
But when it comes to foreign products of the same make, they do not even question if a warranty is available or bargain too much either.
“This issue is very challenging,” he said.
Islam believes the government should build an industrial park for sanitaryware makers so they can avoid various barriers and concentrate on manufacturing products that are completely home-grown with locally generated raw materials.
“Such support from the government could even help the industry grow towards becoming a major exporter,” Islam added.
Akij Group, one of the biggest local industrial conglomerates, invested about Tk 90 crore for a new sanitaryware plant that will have the capacity to produce around 10,000 pieces of bathroom fittings each day.
Named Akij Bathware Ltd, the new facility located in Trishal Upazila of Mymensingh will create around 500 opportunities for direct employment, a company official said on condition of anonymity.
The factory, which is equipped to produce some 37 types of sanitaryware products, will be launched next month.
“There is no other company in Bangladesh that has the technology that we will use to make the products,” he added.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (25 April) called for speaking out against all forms of aggression and atrocities, and say ‘no’ to wars.
“We must speak out against all forms of aggression and atrocities, and say ‘no’ to wars,” she said adding that Bangladesh supports the UN Secretary General’s ‘New Agenda for Peace.
The prime minister was addressing the 80th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) held at the ESCAP Hall (2nd floor), United Nations Conference Center (UNCC) here.
She arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday on a six-day official visit to Thailand.
The PM said the pre-condition for sustainable development is lasting peace and security.
“We must settle regional disputes and tension through dialogue. Our mutual respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity must remain paramount,” she said.
Hasina called upon the Asia-Pacific region, especially ASEAN, to redouble their efforts to end Rohingya crisis as all efforts at regional connectivity, integration, and prosperity will continue to be marked by a missing puzzle without it.
“The origin of their crisis has been in Myanmar, and its solution also lies in Myanmar,” she declared.
“As long as that solution remains out of reach, all our efforts at regional connectivity, integration, and prosperity will continue to be marked by a missing puzzle. Let us redouble our efforts to put that puzzle back in place,” she said.
She said that in August 2017, when thousands of Rohingya men, women, and children from Myanmar fled to Bangladesh, Bangladesh offered them temporary shelter.
“With an ever growing population, this has now become one of the largest humanitarian situations in the world,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said that In the backdrop of ongoing armed conflicts in Myanmar, the Rohingya repatriation process is also getting delayed.
“This is creating serious security risks within and beyond our territories,” she said.
She called upon the Asia-Pacific region, especially ASEAN, to play a proactive role in resolving the volatile situation in Myanmar.
“We must ensure that the Rohingya can go back home in safety and dignity at the earliest possible,” she said.
The prime minister said that the Asia-Pacific region must stand united against its common enemies of poverty and hunger.
She said Bangladesh has reduced poverty from 41.51 percent to 18.7 percent between 2006 and 2022.
It also reduced extreme poverty from 25.1 to 5.6 percent during the same period.
“We remain confident about eradicating extreme poverty by 2030,” she said.
She mentioned that Bangladesh has made notable progress on food security, with focused interventions on maternal and child nutrition.
“Our current priority is to address inequalities through income distribution, asset ownership, and social protection,” she said.
The prime minister said that Asia-Pacific region must put up a united front in tackling the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and transboundary pollution.
“We need to push for ambitious climate financing goals beyond 2025 at COP-29. We need to cooperate on cross-border water management and air quality improvement. We must all prepare for growing extreme weather events,” she said.
In this connection, she suggested looking into Bangladesh’s experience in disaster risk reduction.
“We appreciate UN-ESCAP’s support in improving our early warning capabilities,” she added.
Briefly describing various development programmes and achievements of her govebrment, the prime minister said that much of the development gains are affected by climate impacts.
“As a low-lying delta, Bangladesh has no option but to invest heavily in climate resilience,” she said.
She mentioned that Bangladesh is already recognised as a global leader in climate adaptation.
“We are happy to share our traditional and innovative solutions with other vulnerable countries,” she said.
She said that Bangladesh has urged developed and emerging economies in the region to raise their time-bound emission reduction targets.
“For economies in transition, it is important to have a just energy transition.”
In Bangladesh, she said, “we are working on long-term energy security with a sound mix of clean and renewable energy.”
“We shall continue to do our part in pursuing a circular and low-carbon economic growth pathway.”
She underscored the need for increased and easy access to financing and technology from both the public and private sectors.
“I invite UN-ESCAP to help build the capacity of climate-vulnerable countries to mobilise adequate international climate financing.”
PM Hasina said that Bangladesh now provides critical links to the Trans-Asian Highway and Railway networks.
“Our physical and digital infrastructures are being developed to foster regional trade and connectivity.”
She said Bangladesh offers access to the Bay of Bengal for land-locked territories in its neighbourhood.
“We stand ready to work together with all regional partners through mutual understanding and cooperation,” said the prime minister.
Bangladesh and Qatar signed 10 cooperation documents on Tuesday, including five agreements and five MoUs, aimed at strengthening ties and elevating relations to new heights.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani witnessed the signing of the documents.
The five agreements cover cooperation in the legal field, promotion and protection of mutual investments, avoidance of double taxation, maritime transport, and the establishment of a Joint Business Council (JBC) between FBCCI & QCCI.
The five MoUs include cooperation in sports and youth, manpower employment (Labour), diplomatic training, education, higher education, scientific research, and between Qatar Ports management Company “MAWANI QATAR” and Chittagong Ports Authority.
Earlier in the morning, PM Hasina warmly welcomed and received Emir Sheikh Tamim at her office.
They had a tête-à-tête meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office, followed by a bilateral meeting.
After signing the visitors’ book, the emir headed for Bangabhaban where the president received him.
A high-level Qatari delegation led by Qatar’s emir is on a state visit to Bangladesh at the invitation of the president and the prime minister.
During the ceremony, a road and a park in Dhaka were named after Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.
The park, constructed in Kalshi area of Mirpur under Dhaka North City Corporation, and the road from Mirpur ECB point to Kalsi Fly Over were named after Emir of Qatar.
Now, the road and park are known as Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani Avenue and Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani Park.
The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI) is urging for greater involvement of marginal, small, and medium enterprises in international trade fairs. This initiative aims to spotlight Bangladesh’s promising products on the global market.
FBCCI President Mahbubul Alam made the call during the first meeting of the organisation’s Standing Committee on National and International Trade Fairs and Foreign Delegations. He emphasised the need to provide marginal, small, and medium enterprises with the space and resources to effectively display their products at these events.
“The participation of marginal, small, and medium enterprises is crucial at both national and international levels,” Mahbubul Alam said. “This will allow us to export Bangladesh’s promising products and open new markets.”
The FBCCI president informed that his organisation is actively discussing and collaborating with the government to make this a reality. He also proposed organising roadshows in neighbouring countries and Europe to revive the country’s handicraft industry and increase export opportunities for these products.
Standing Committee Chairman Nuruzzaman echoed Mahbubul Alam’s sentiments, highlighting Bangladesh’s vast potential and young population. “We need to move beyond the garment sector and focus on product diversification and market creation,” Nuruzzaman said.
Achieving this, he acknowledged, will require close collaboration with the Export Promotion Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Bangladesh Investment Development Authority.
FBCCI Senior Vice President Md Amin Helaly pledged the organisation’s support in facilitating increased exports through participation in foreign trade fairs. He stressed, however, the importance of raising awareness among Bangladeshis about the country’s diverse and promising products.
The meeting concluded with an open discussion where participants expressed keen interest in organising and participating in various sectoral fairs, both domestically and internationally, under the FBCCI’s umbrella.
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