DHAKA: The President of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and Chairman of the Confederation of German Trade Unions Michael Sommer visited Bangladesh from April 6–9 to learn about the current situation and the perspectives of the labour movement in Bangladesh.

With the first anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse coming up soon, Sommer was keen to see the progress on post Rana Plaza initiatives like implementing The Accord on Fire and Building Safety 2013, an agreement between domestic and international trade unions and international brands and retailers.

He visited a couple of textile factories to get an impression of the conditions under which garments for international buyers are produced. Germany imports 17% of all ready-made garments produced in Bangladesh.

The ITUC President called on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the State Minister for Labour and Employment Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu. Sommer also met with Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus and the founder of BRAC Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, and held meetings with stakeholders in the RMG supply chain.
 
On 8 April Sommer addressed a multi-stakeholder round table arranged by the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) and Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

In his keynote speech, Sommer called for more rights for trade unions as a necessary precondition for establishing true social partnership between employers, workers, and the government. He also stressed the importance of involving trade unions as equal partners in international inspection initiatives.

At the end of his visit to Dhaka Sommer inaugurated the new Bangladesh office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, which represents the values of the German Social Democratic Party.

Sommer has been Germany’s foremost trade union leader since 2002. He also serves as President of International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), a global platform currently representing 176 million workers in 161 countries.

BDST: 1412 HRS, APR 08, 2014