Muktadir said the textile sector needs skills upgrading to ensure long-term sustainability

Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, adviser to the ministries of Commerce, Industries, and Textiles and Jute, today stressed the need to enhance industrial skills and improve the quality of education to ensure the sustainability of the textile sector.

“To make the textile industry sustainable, the sector must become more competitive and modern,” he said while addressing a seminar titled “Sustainable Transition to Employment: Preparation and Pathway for Textile Students” as the chief guest at the Jute Diversification Promotion Centre in the capital’s Farmgate area.

The minister said the government has no plans to establish or operate new state-owned mills, adding that the private sector will continue to lead business operations while the government provides policy support and creates a business-friendly environment.

Muktadir also highlighted the need to modernise the curricula of textile institutes and engineering colleges so they remain aligned with technological advancements and industry demands.

He said initiatives would be taken to involve the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) and capable private mills with educational institutions to improve the quality of textile education.

According to him, such collaboration would help address the shortage of teachers, encourage technological development, and provide students with practical industrial experience.

The minister identified uncertainty in energy supply, rising production costs, high financing costs, and technological limitations as key challenges facing the textile sector, adding that the government is working to resolve those issues.

He also said the sector would be made more competitive through the expansion of man-made fibre production, development of new products, and value chain upgrades.

Textiles and Jute Ministry Secretary Abdun Naser Khan delivered the welcome speech at the seminar, while Associate Professor Abbas Uddin Shayek of Bangladesh University of Textiles presented the keynote paper.

Executive Director of Blue Planet Kazi Masum Rashed and BTMA President Shawkat Aziz Russell joined the panel discussion.

Professor Abdus Shahid of Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology, student Rony Gazi of Gopalganj Textile Engineering College, and former student Md Kabir of Sirajganj Textile Institute also spoke at the event.

Officials from different departments and agencies under the Ministry of Textiles and Jute, alongside businesspeople, entrepreneurs, and current and former textile students, attended the seminar.