European clothing brand group for safety leaving Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A group set up by European clothing brands that has monitored factory safety in Bangladesh for years plans to leave, with its duties being assumed by a local group including unions and industry figures in the world's second-largest garment manufacturer.

The European group and a separate North American group were formed after the collapse of Rana Plaza, a building housing five garment factories that made clothing for international brands. The collapse in 2013 killed at least 1,134 people and was one of several fatal accidents in the country's garment industry that were blamed on safety lapses.

The uproar that followed the collapse prompted about 190 European brands including Marks and Spencer, H&M, Tesco and Carrefour to form the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.

Accord's departure, which officials said Thursday was planned for May, follows a protracted tussle with garment manufacturers who wanted Bangladesh's government to form a local watch group to monitor the sector.

“Accord will be leaving Bangladesh and we are forming a national collaborative council in which brands, unions and industry will be together to monitor factories,” Rubana Huq, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, told The Associated Press. “We are taking over from Accord all of its resources and will follow their protocols but it will be based on the national context.”

The new council will operate within Bangladesh's regulatory framework and cooperate with the government, a joint statement from the Accord and the BGMEA said Wednesday. “It will retain all health and safety inspections and remediation, safety training and complaints handling functions currently carried out by the Accord,” it said.

The Accord existed alongside another monitoring group for...