Introduction

Bangladesh is a developing country with a population of about 152.5 million in a total area of
147 570 sq.km, making it one of the most heavily populated countries of the world. The overall
economy of Bangladesh has registered a steady improvement with more than 6% average
growth during the last five years. The industrial sector has been an important contributor to the
country’s GDP, its share standing at 28.6% in 2011.
In recent decades, Bangladesh has experienced unprecedented changes in every sphere of its
economy and its society. With a steady growth rate for almost a decade, the country has
improved certain socio-economic realities at the micro and macro levels and made progress in
attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Bangladesh’s integration with global
markets and increased use of new technologies has vastly expanded economic opportunities,
but they have also exacerbated inequalities and vulnerabilities in the country. In this context,
this report takes stock of Bangladesh’s trade and labor-market policies, analyzes the links
between trade and employment, and highlights relevant policy recommendations for
maximizing the employment impact of trade in Bangladesh.

Lather industry in Bangladesh has been positively contributing to the development of the
country. The industry although still undergoing much needed reforms and lack of capital, access
to global market and special incentives can change the industry drastically, as more economic
opportunities become available for the masses and the heavy price-tag on the technology
would steadily reduce.

Leather industry in Bangladesh

Leather is the basis of one of the oldest industries in Bangladesh and plays a significant role in
the national economy with a good reputation worldwide. This is an agro-based by-product
industry with locally available indigenous raw materials having a potential for export
development and sustained growth over the coming years. Bangladesh leather is widely known
around the world for its high qualities of fine grain, uniform fiber structure, smooth feel and
natural texture. Real progress in terms of product development, with respect to crust and
finished leather commenced in the 1990s following the ban on export of wet-blue hides from
Bangladesh took Bangladesh to develop the leather sector in the following years.

Tanning in Bangladesh

A number of tanneries took the opportunity in 1990s for the production of crust and finished
leather. There are reportedly around 220 tanneries in Bangladesh but, in fact, only 113
tanneries are in effective operation, out of these 20 units are reported to be fairly large (7 units
very large), around 45 units are considered of medium size and around 48 units are considered
small groups as detailed in Table I.3 105 of the tanneries are positioned arbitrarily in the
Hazaribagh area in Dhaka where 84 per cent of the total supply of hides and skins are processed
in a highly congested area of only 29 hectares of land as in factories under construction include
the Korean company ‘Young ones’ footwear complex which will be the largest in Asia.

The leather products sub-sector is ideal for youth, women and micro entrepreneurial start-up
businesses, based on the low costs and capital investment. It can also provide the opportunity
to gain experience to transfer to footwear or other creative sub sectors.

Livestock in Bangladesh
Bangladesh has a fairly large livestock population to support a strong and growing tanning
industry. The cow hides account for 56% of the production, goat skins for 30% and buffalo
makes up the rest. The current output in Bangladesh is about 200 million sq.ft annually. Apart
from bovine hides, buffalo, goat and sheep; a good quantity of kangaroo hides (pickled
condition/wet-blue) are imported from Australia and finished in Bangladesh, shoes are made of
this kangaroo leather for export, mostly to Japan. Some ostrich leather is also imported from
Australia for production of high quality and high priced bags and wallets for re-export to
Australia.
Leather export performance
The contribution of the leather industry to the Bangladesh economy was about US$500 million,
accounting for 3% of country’s exports6 in 2010-11. Recent export trends indicate that the
footwear sector (value added merchandise), is growing the fastest.
The performance with regard to footwear is increasing substantially. Further progress in this
regard is expected in the years to come. Currently there are about 30 mechanized footwear
companies in the country, most produce leather footwear for global export. A large number of
semi-mechanized and non-mechanized footwear units are also operating for the domestic
market. Some 5 or 6 companies produce quality leather goods which are regularly exported in
appreciable volume. Export performance can be anticipated to increase in the next five years
with at least 12-15% growth in turnover per annum. In the next two years the existing footwear
factories are likely to export more shoes. The new capacity [expanded and new factories] that
will come on stream from late 2012 will give increased growth.

Bangladesh: Location of Tanneries

Professional Associations

There are large number of associations such as Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather Goods and
Footwear Exporters Association (BFLLFEA) which operates with over 80 members. The
Bangladesh Tanners Association (BTA) with over 150 members engages in export trade. The
Institute of Leather Engineering and Technology (ILET) is the only educational institution in
Bangladesh covering human resources development in the field and new technology.

CURRENT METHODS OF DISPOSAL OF SOLID AND LIQUIDWASTE FROM THE BANGLADESH

LEATHER INDUSTRY

Only 255kg of finished leather (grain and embossed split) is obtained for every 1000kg wet
salted hides processed, i.e. just 25.5% of the raw material becomes finished leather.7 Around
40m3 of water (process and technical water) is required for this and out of 452kg of process
chemicals used only 72kg are retained in and on the leather thus, 380kg are wasted and
discharged in various forms. The estimated amount of tannery effluent is 20 000 m3/day in the
Hazaribagh area. All wastewater generated is discharged untreated to the sewer passing
through the area leading to the Buruganga River, the main river through Dhaka.

The sewers in the area do overflow causing health problems. Hazardous wastes pollute the
surrounding environment and, finally reaching the river Buriganga, destroy its ecosystem and
make its water unusable. The river is now on the verge of ecosystem destruction and is a major
health hazard.

A substantial quantity of the solid waste generated by tanneries is dumped by the roadside in
Hazaribagh, so the environmental challenges are significant and present a danger to human
health. The living conditions in those areas are far from satisfactory.

CASE STUDY PROJECT: UNIDO – RE-TIE

BANGLADESH

The reduction of environmental threats and increase of the export potential of Bangladeshi
leather products (Re-Tie Bangladesh) is a project co-funded by the European Commission. This
is under the SWITCH Asia programme and implemented by the project partners: SEQUA(lead
partner), BFZ, BFLLFEA, BTA, DCCI and UNIDO for three years with total budget €2 071 000 (EU
contribution 90%). The overall objective of Re-Tie Bangladesh is the provision of employment
and income-opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the leather sector in
Bangladesh, the SMEs to work economically and ecologically more sustainably using advanced
technologies and practices. Table IV shows the project activities of Re-Tie Bangladesh.12

The objectives of Re-Tie Bangladesh are:

I. More efficient use of natural resources and significantly reduce environmental pollution and
waste in the Bangladeshi leather sector;

II. More efficient use of energy and implementation of measures for consumption reduction;

III. Improved occupational safety and health and other international standards to enhance the
exportability of Bangladeshi leather products;

Livestock population for leather industry

Sl. No Category Annual Kill in Million Average Total Average

Weight/Price productions area per
in Kg in Tonnes piece
(Square
feet)

1 Cow/calf 4.00 12 48 000 (56%) 20-22

2 Goat/sheep 15.00 1.5–2 26000 (30%) 3.75

3 Buffalo 0.50 20-25 11 000 (14%) 32-35

Table 1: Livestock population for leather industry for raw hide

IV. A strengthened institutional structure and an outreach to SMEs for the promotion of
sustainable production in Bangladeshi tannery/leather industry.

POSSIBLE TANNERY RELOCATIONS:

TANNERY ECONOMIC ZONE

The unplanned tanneries at Hazaribagh in Dhaka do not have supporting infrastructure

facilities. Hazaribagh itself is surrounded by thickly populated localities of the city. Relocation of
the tanneries to a more spacious location with appropriate infrastructure for efficient and cost
effective treatment of solid and liquid wastes is an obvious need. To set up a Central Effluent
Treatment Plant (CETP) has thus become a prerequisite for the survival and growth of this vital
export-oriented sector of the country. The Government of Bangladesh has decided to move the
whole tannery operation to a new location of 200 acres at 20km from Dhaka city.

According to the present plan, 144 acres (72%) of the land are to be developed as industrial
plots. The balance, 56 acres (28%), will be utilized for infrastructure for the estate that includes
a Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), disposal yard, administrative building, drainage,
electricity sub-station and others. After the relocation of tanneries from Hazaribagh, the project
envisages relocation of tannery units from other parts of the country; and also hopes to attract
fresh investment from within and outside the country for establishment of new tannery units. A
total of 195 developed industrial plots in 4 categories will be created from the 200 acres for the
industry in very near future.

Bangladesh’s leather sector is deemed competitive because of its low labour cost
differentiation, local availability of hides and a favorable business environment. This is
complemented with the existence of organizations and institutional arrangements like the
Export Processing Zone (EPZ) etc. and duty free access to major international markets.

There are about 49 300 tonnes of solid waste generated every year from tanneries in
Bangladesh. The government should try to facilitate growth in industries which can use these
wastes to make other value added products. A by-product manufacturing unit (chrome and
protein recovery) and energy generation could be useful options. Bangladeshi leather products
will have no access to developed countries, including those of European Union if the
government fails to set up the CETP by June 2014. The industry in Bangladesh as a whole faces
considerable concerns with regard to end-of-life, recycling and re-use of leather and leather
products. To make progress, the Government is keen to relocate tanneries from Hazaribagh to
Savar; this gives the unique opportunity to adopt sustainable practice in a suitable
environment.

Historical Perspective

After the independence in 1971, Bangladesh followed a strategy of a highly restricted trade
regime. Characterized by high tariffs and non-tariff barriers to trade, and an overvalued
exchange rate system, this policy regime was the basis for the import-substitution
industrialization strategy of the government. The inward-looking approach to development was
pursued with the aim of improving the balance of payments position of the country and
creating a protected internal market for the domestic manufacturing such as the leather
industries. It was also believed that, by replacing the previously imported goods with domestic
production, import-substituting industrialization strategy would achieve the national objective
of economic growth by promoting industrialization and reducing unemployment.

According to EPB [Export Promotion Bureau], export of leather and leather goods crossed $1
billion in fiscal 2014-15 for the second year in a row. Bangladesh exported leather and leather
goods worth $1.13 billion in 2014-15 which was $1.12 billion in the previous fiscal year.

Evolution of the industry

Trade policy during 1972-1980 consisted significant import controls. The major administrative
instruments employed to implement the import policy during this period were the foreign
exchange allocation system and the Import Policy Orders (IPOs). Under the IPOs, items were
specified whether their importation were allowed, prohibited or required special authorization.
With the exception of a few cases, licenses were required for all other imports. The argument
behind the import-licensing system was that such a system would ensure the allocation of
foreign exchange to priority areas and protect vulnerable local industries from import
competition. However, the system was subject to criticism for not being sufficiently flexible to
ensure its smooth functioning under changing circumstances. Moreover, it was characterized by
complexity, deficiency in administration, cumbersome foreign exchange budgeting procedures,
poor inter-agency coordination, rigid allocation of licenses and time-consuming procedures.

Leather industry in Bangladesh: The Labor work force

During the 1980s, moderate import liberalization took place. In 1984, a significant change was
made in the import policy regime with the abolition of the import-licensing system, and imports
were permitted against letters of credit (L/C). Since 1986, there had been significant changes in
the import procedures and in the IPOs with respect to their contents and structure. Whereas,
prior to 1986, the IPOs contained a lengthy Positive List of importable, in 1986 the Positive List
was replaced by two lists, namely the Negative List (for banned items) and the Restricted List
(for items importable on fulfillment of certain prescribed conditions). Imports of any items
outside the lists were allowed. These changes might be considered as significant moves towards
import liberalization, since no restrictions were then imposed on the import of items that did
not appear in the IPOs. With the aim to increase the elements of stability and certainty of trade
policy, IPOs with relatively longer periods replaced the previous practice of issuing import policy
annually.

In May 2014, the Bangladeshi leather sector crossed the $1 billion mark in annual exports for
the first time. Compound annual growth for the preceding five years was over 25 percent, and
there are early signs that the industry is moving towards higher value-added production, more
diversified export markets, and innovative new products. Export manufacturers in Bangladesh
have been slow to venture beyond ready-made garments, but with more attention from
policymakers and an improved environmental image internationally, the leather sector appears
ready to change this. The Export Processing Zones (throughout Bangladesh) at present have 18
shoe and leather goods factories and there are at least seven large factories under
construction.

Employment and Labor force engaged in lather industry

After the independence of Bangladesh, the government took over the tannery industry
abandoned by the departing non-Bengali entrepreneurs but had limited success in operating
them under the public sector. Export of processed leather consisted almost entirely of wet blue
leather till 1980-81. After 1981, a number of policy support measures aimed at raising the level
of value addition in the industry provided incentive for new private investment in leather
industry. The ban on export of wet blue leather in June 1990 led to the setting up of modern
leather tanning units for the production of crust leather (tanned leather after further
processing of wet blue leather) and finished leather and this was followed by new investment in
leather goods industry, particularly leather footwear. However, till now leather industry
occupies only a modest position in Bangladesh economy way below its true potential. Thus, in
2001-02, value addition in leather enterprises with 10 or more workers amounted to Tk. 8,737
million ($152 million), which was about 3 percent of manufacturing value added in that size
group of industries. Total 2 employments in leather enterprises with 10 or more workers was
27,686 or about 1 per cent of manufacturing employment in that size group. In 2007-08, export
of leather and leather products amounted to $463 million, which was around 3.3 percent of
total export earnings in that year. There are three broad components of the leather industry (i)
Leather tanning (BSIC Code 1911), (ii) Leather footwear (BSIC Code 1921) and (iii) Other leather
products such as handbags, carry bags, wallets, cases etc (BSIC Code 1912). In 2001-02, leather
footwear contributed 66 percent of total value addition in leather industry (with 10 or more
workers) followed by leather tanning (31 percent), and other leather products (3 per cent).
Leather footwear accounted for 28% of export earnings from leather and leather products in
2007-08, while the share of leather and other leather products were 68% and 4% respectively.
Thus notwithstanding its small size, leather industry in Bangladesh seems to have undergone
significant transformation during the past two decades from a low value addition tanning
activity to a producer of leather footwear and leather goods along with high value added crust
and finished leather.

Location based Concentration

Concentration by location historically, the tannery industry got concentrated in the Hazaribagh
area of Dhaka city where nearly 90% of all tanneries are located. This concentration occurred in
an unplanned manner posing grave threat to the environment. Hence, the government has
taken a move to shift the industry to a leather estate at Savar outside the city. There is also
location based concentration of leather footwear industry in Bangladesh. Nearly 90% of all
leather footwear making units is located in and around Dhaka city with some leather footwear
making units existing in Chittagong and Khulna city and in Bhairab of Kishoreganj district. Within
Dhaka city, there is a concentration of small leather footwear making units (having 10-49
workers) in two areas known as Siddique Bazaar and Bongshal where nearly half of these small
units are located. Others areas of concentration of small and medium leather footwear making
units in and around Dhaka city include 3 Lalbag, Nazirabazar, Sitpatli, Bangladuar, Alu Bazar,
Dakkhin Moishundi, Pagla and Nawabpur.

Growth of the Footwear Industry

Growth of Leather Footwear Industry Between 1991-92 and 2001-02, value addition in leather
and leather goods industry having 10 or more workers increased at an annual compound rate
of 8.5%. During the same period, value addition in leather footwear industry in the same size
group increased at an annual rate of 15.4% raising the share of leather footwear in leather and
leather goods output from 35.7% in 1991-92 to 66% in 2001-02 (Table 1). In fact, leather
footwear gained in importance in the overall manufacturing sector of Bangladesh during this
period raising its share in manufacturing value added (10 or more workers) from 1.4% in 1991-
92 to 2% in 2001-02. Growth of leather footwear industry also contributed to growth of
manufacturing employment. Thus, in the 10 or more workers size group employment in leather
footwear experienced a yearly compound growth of nearly 6.6% during 1991-92 to 2001-02.

Recent Exports
Export of leather and leather products increased from about $137 million in 1990-91 to $415
million in 2007-08 showing a trend growth rate of 11.6%. Before 1990-91, there was no export
of leather footwear and in 1990-91 export of leather footwear stood at only $2.8 million.
During 1990-91 to 2007-08, leather footwear export increased at a trend rate of 16.7% (Fig 1)
and stood at nearly $115 million in 2007-08 raising the share of leather footwear in total export
of leather and leather goods from a paltry 2% in 1990-91 to 28% in 2007-08.

Size Distribution
The evidence on size distribution of leather footwear industry in 1991-92 and 2001-02 based on
CMI. As is evident from the Table, in 1991-92 there were a large number of small enterprises
having 10-19 workers. These were mostly handmade footwear manufacturers who collected
necessary raw materials from the local wholesale market at Bongshal and produced economy-
quality footwear for domestic market. They used sewing machine only for sewing and the rest
was done manually. Beyond these handmade footwear producers there were medium and
large industrial producers of leather footwear who were relatively few in number but had a
more mechanized production process and produced better quality footwear for the domestic
market. The largest of these was the multinational Bata Shoe Co. having more than 1000
workers and produced both finished leather and leather footwear. By 2001-02, the structure of
the leather footwear industry in Bangladesh changed significantly. Access to export market led
to establishment of larger enterprises. At the same time, medium sized enterprises using
mechanized production process and catering to domestic market also increased in number
some of which graduated from the handmade footwear producer category. As a result, the
period 1991/92 to 2001/02 marked significant increase in the average size of employment in
the footwear industry and the increased mechanization also contributed to higher level of labor
productivity.

A few sectors considered by the government of Bangladesh as a thrust sector, especially after
the success of the ready-made garments (RMG), have been major beneficiaries of these
reforms. Apart from supporting the main items, non-traditional sectors with high export
potentials have also been identified as privileged activities, for which special facilities are
offered through export policies. For example, in the Export Policy 2009-12, software and ICT
products, agro products (including agro-processed goods), light engineering goods (including
auto-parts and bicycles), leather goods, home textile, toiletries and ship building were identified
as ‘thrust sectors’ and several incentives such as the provision of project loan with low interest
rate on a priority basis, income tax rebate, cash support with other financial facilities, export
credit under relaxed conditions and with subsidized interest rate, concessions on air freight,
support for marketing, etc.
The leather and its products experienced positive and statistically significant impact of trade
openness on the employment when import-output ratio was considered to be the indicator of
openness. Labor demand significantly contracted in drugs and pharmaceuticals and other
chemicals, miscellaneous petroleum products, nonelectrical machinery, and electrical
machinery manufacturing industries. The rest manufacturing industries witnessed insignificant
impact on labor demand.

Entrepreneurial Background
All the case study enterprises are sole proprietorship enterprises, and the entrepreneurs are
Muslim males with prior experience in this industry, the average length of experience being
nearly 8 years. All respondents mentioned prior experience and small capital requirement as
the main motivational factor behind starting the enterprise. The educational background of the
entrepreneurs is rather low with average years of schooling being 4.3 years, although the
entrepreneurs of the larger enterprises have somewhat longer schooling records (Table 6). The
informal nature of the case study enterprise is reflected in the fact that none of the “less than
10 workers” enterprises were registered with any public authority. Only one enterprise in the
10- 25 workers size group was found to be registered with the City Corporation. The incidence
was somewhat higher in the case of larger enterprises having more than 25 workers
Competitive prices and improved quality have attracted an increasing number of importers
from Asia and Europe in recent years. Almost all of the country’s leather production,
80 percent, is exported. As with Bangladesh’s ready-made garment industry where as many as
8,000 to 12,000 tannery workers working in the Dhaka city or near city peripheries , who toil 12
to 14 hours a day, seven days a week for less than $2 a day, according to the local Tannery
Workers Union.

Leather Industry in Bangladesh: lacks a sustainable toxic waste Management

Many factories, supplies black leather to wholesalers in Hong Kong, Korea, and Italy, hides are
churned in giant wooden drums filled with chemicals such as chromium sulfate and arsenic,
which are used to soften them.

Production and Marketing

The respondents mentioned most of their main raw materials such as finished leather, lining
leather, artificial sole, in-sole leather and other accessories to be locally procured. Only
chemicals were mentioned to be mainly of import origin. However, further investigations
revealed that except finished leather, all other items have high import contents. Taking
advantage of the liberalized trade regime, small producers import a significant part of the
ingredients of these inputs and manufacture these footwear-inputs locally. In fact, as reported
by the case study entrepreneurs, local availability of these footwear-inputs based on imported
ingredients has been a major contributing factor to the growth of small footwear making
enterprises in Bangladesh. An interesting feature of small scale leather footwear making in
Bangladesh is the dominance of piece-rated workers. As shown in Table 9, the smaller
enterprises with less than 10 workers are fully dependent on piece-rated workers. The
incidence of time rated worker is seen to increase with the size of the enterprise.

Perception regarding constraint to growth

14 out of the 15 respondents mentioned working capital shortage as the main constraint to
growth of the enterprise. Space rental was mentioned by one respondent as the main factor
restricting growth. It is possible that high cost of space rental was also perceived by some of the
other respondents as a problem of working capital shortage. Five out of the 15 respondents
mentioned lack of skilled workers as a problem constraining growth.

Structural Reforms and Liberalizations

The range of products subject to import ban or restriction has been curtailed substantially from
as high as 752 in 1985-86 to only 26 in 2012-15. Import restrictions have been imposed on two
grounds: either for trade-related reasons (i.e., to provide protection to domestic industries) or
for non-trade reasons (e.g., to protect environment, public health and safety, and security).
Therefore, only the trade-related restrictions should be of interest to policy reforms and
liberalization.

Table 1: Fiscal Years and The Rate of Tariff with maximum Rate
Fiscal Year Maximum Rate (%) Un-weighted Tariff Rate (%)

1991-92 350.0 70.0

1992-93 300.0 47.4

1993-94 300.0 36.0
1994-95 60.0 25.9
1995-96 50.0 22.3
1996-97 45.0 21.5

1997-98 42.5 20.7

1998-99 40.0 20.3

1999-00 37.5 19.5

2000-01 37.5 18.6

2001-02 37.5 17.1

2002-03 32.5 16.5

2003-04 30.0 15.6

2004-05 25.0 13.5

2005-06 25.0 15.5

2011-12 25.0 14.9

Source: BEI (2005), Bangladesh Economic Review (2004) and WTO (2012)

These called for new trade and tariffs liberalization for the country. Beginning from the late
1980s the tariff regime has become increasingly liberalized. Between 1991-92 and 2011-12 the
un-weighted average rate of tariff fell from 70 percent to 14.9 percent (Table 1). Much of this
reduced protection was achieved through the reduction in the maximum rate. Table 2 suggests
that in 1991-92 the maximum tariff rate was 350 percent, which came down to only 25 percent
in 2011-2012. Bangladesh has no tariff quotas, seasonal tariffs and variable import levies (WTO,
2000). All these measures have greatly simplified the tariff regime and helped streamline
customs administration procedures.
One important aspect of the tariff structure in Bangladesh relates to the use of import taxes
which have protective effects (also known as para-tariffs) over and above the protection
provided by customs duties (World Bank, 2004). These taxes have been the infrastructure
development surcharge (IDSC), supplementary duties (SD), Regulatory duties.

Table2: Yearly Customs and Para-Tariffs with protection rate

Year All tariff lines
Customs Para-tariffs Total
protection rate
Duties
1991-92 70.64 2.98 73.62
1992-93 57.93 2.59 60.52
1993-94 43.47 2.43 45.90
1994-95 34.24 3.30 37.55

1995-96 28.70 3.26 31.96

1996-97 28.24 3.38 31.61

1997-98 27.27 5.88 33.15

1998-99 26.59 5.82 32.41

1999-00 22.40 6.99 29.39

Source: World Bank Report 2004-2005

Although these taxes have been primarily imposed for generating additional revenues, in the
absence of equivalent taxes on domestic production they have provide extra protection to local
industries. Similarly, while the value added tax (VAT) is supposed to be trade-neutral,
exemptions for specified domestic products have also resulted in its having some protective
content. Some of these tariffs, such as the IDSC, are applied across-the-board to all or
practically all imports, and can be considered as general or normally applied protective taxes
which affect all or nearly all tariff lines. Others are selective protective taxes in that they are
only applied to selected products, for example the ‘supplementary’ duties.
The para-tariffs employed during the 1990s and 2000s in Bangladesh are summarized in Table
2. It appears that, despite the lowering of customs duties, the presence of para-tariffs did not
significantly lower the total protection rate.

Conclusion
Developed countries are treating Bangladesh’s leather sector as secure for investment.
However, the sector has a rather constrained demand structure in the domestic market due the
limited national purchasing power. Nevertheless, industry insiders are expecting a growth in the
domestic market in consideration of the fact that approximately 10% of Bangladesh’s total
population (around 15 million) is estimated to have an income level comparable to that of the
developed countries. Hence, there appears to be a large unexplored domestic market for
footwear and other leather products for Bangladesh with an estimated demand for 30 million
pairs per year. The footwear sub-sector of Bangladesh earned revenues in excess of US$250
million in 2010-2011. The European Union (EU) is the biggest destination for footwear exports
with a 60% share, followed by Japan with 30%, and the rest of the world accounting for 10%.
Bangladesh has only a 1% share of the world footwear market.

References:

BHOWMIK, A. K.
Industries' Location as Jeopardy for Sustainable Urban Development in Asia: A Review of the
Bangladesh Leather Processing Industry Relocation Plan

Website
Anon Leather Industry Insiders
http://www.ihdindia.org/Formal-and-Informal-Employment/Paper-8-Leather-Footwear-
Industry-in-Dhaka-A-Case-Study.pdf