The 4th edition of the Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF) will take place on 16^th  March 2023 in Dhaka.

 

The event will spotlight opportunities for sustainable clothing production in Bangladesh. 

 

The event will host a range of plenaries, seminars, green growth exhibitions and informal networking opportunities. Main topics of discussion will include circularity, CO2 reductions and climate action, shifting to renewable energy and human rights due diligence.

 

More than 60 speakers and 20 exhibitors presenting their most sustainable production technologies will participate.

 

The Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF) 2023 will take place at a decisive time for the fashion industry and for its sustainability agenda. The past two years have seen a shift away from voluntary agreements by the industry towards hard rules and regulations.

Bangladesh is the world’s second-largest garment sourcing destination. In recent years, the country has committed itself in upgrading its textile industry by undertaking a significant series of factory safety programs and has notably increased the number of its LEED-rated factories.

 

Penalties for failing to improve sustainability performance will mean lost business for fashion brands, as well as potentially falling foul of supply chain due diligence laws.

 

Mostafiz Uddin, entrepreneur and organiser of Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF), commented: “At every major fashion brand, the conversation is the same right now. It is ‘how can we reduce our carbon emissions in order to meet net-zero targets’."

“For years, fashion brands focused on their own retail operations, but the research shows that up to 90% of carbon emissions take place at Tier 3 level, in other words, in supply chains," he continued.

 

“Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF) is so critical, as it offers an opportunity to explore the challenges, we face in reducing emissions and improving sustainability performance. SAF brings together all of the key stakeholders involved in the fashion and textile industries as well as policy makers and businesses which can provide solutions to some of the problems the industry is trying so hard to solve," he said.

 

The Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF) 2023 will bring together clothing manufacturers, government officials and policy makers, professionals in green finance, human rights specialists, green production and technology experts, fashion sustainability and sourcing teams and NGOs working in fashion supply chains.

 

Top speakers will participate the March event. Among them there will be Tipu Munshi MP, Honourable Minister, Ministry of Commerce, Bangladesh, Tazul Islam MP, Honourable Minister, Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives, Bangladesh, Nasrul Hamid, MP, Honourable State Minister, Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, Bangladesh, Zunaid Ahmed Palak MP, Honourable State Minister for Information and Communication Technology (ICT), and many other local and international authorities, personalities, entrepreneurs and activists.

 

Event partners will include, among others, H&M Group, Bestseller, YKK Corporation and Spinnova PLC. Also participating will be Laudes Foundation, KDS Group, PDS Limited, Epic Group, Noize Jeans, International Labour Organization (ILO)- Better Work Bangladesh, WaterAid Bangladesh, Oxfam in Bangladesh, Ministry of Commerce, U.S. Embassy in Bangladesh, Delegation of the European Union in Bangladesh, Embassy of Denmark in Bangladesh, Embassy of Sweden in Bangladesh, UNIDO, USAID Bangladesh, Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), The Apparel Impact Institute, Good Fashion Fund, Enviu, Fashion for Good, SLCP and Circle Economy and Global Labor Institute.

 

“As well as looking at environmental issues, Sustainable Apparel Forum 2023 will explore the social context, including better wages and rights for garment workers, a subject which is close to my heart. Ours is an industry which is changing like never before. Sourcing teams are making key strategic decisions, in many cases taking production out of China as they look to save costs and reduce their dependence on that country," Uddin continued.

 

“This represents an opportunity for Bangladesh but only if we present ourselves as a genuinely green and sustainable alternative. At Sustainable Apparel Forum 2023 we will present our vision for greener, cleaner, more ethical supply chains to the outside world,” he added.