Bangladeshi women in garment industry held back by knowledge gap

TOKYO -- As Bangladesh's garment factories -- crucial foreign exchange earners for the South Asian country -- reopen after a major political earthquake, they face a critical issue: Long the backbone of the industry, women have been increasingly departing due to a host of factors including hindrances to advancement.

Among female workers who left the Bangladesh Ready Made Garment (RMG) sector in 2021, just 1% did so as supervisors, according to a report last year by the Ethical Trading Initiative, a U.K. alliance of trade unions, NGOs and companies.