Bangladesh garment factories launch Covid-19 testing lab for workers

A laboratory to test garment workers for coronavirus is opening in Bangladesh as manufacturers seek to stem the spread of COVID-19 in factories that produce clothes for many of the world’s leading fashion brands.

The facility, run by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh, will test up to 180 samples daily from Saturday. Two more laboratories for workers are due to open soon.

“It’s a state-of-the-art lab … workers will get first preference in here,” said Rubana Huq, president of the BGMEA.

“(We) need data on Covid19. So if workers or factories register through us, we can adopt an industry-wide practice of precaution and isolation,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Bangladesh, which ranks behind only China’s a supplier of clothes to Western countries, relies on the garment industry for more than 80 per cent of its exports.

Most of the nation’s 4,000 clothing factories, which employ about 4 million people – mostly women, reopened in April after a month-long break. Factories must adhere to social distancing rules and ensure workers can wash their hands.