Bangladesh

The International Labor Organization (ILO) has launched a new program aimed at improving the relationship between workers and their supervisors in Bangladesh’s readymade garment sector. The effort, funded by the Swedish government and enacted during the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, will work to enhance relations through improved dialogues between employers and workers and implement stronger arbitration methods. The effort begins in November and will run through 2020. (Fibre2Fashion)
 
A total of US$22 million in financing for upgrades and safety improvements has been made available for garment factories in Bangladesh thanks to a new effort by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The agency has entered into a new partnership with Prime Bank Limited and United Commercial Bank to make affordable, long-term credit available to small and medium suppliers in the country. Funds will be available in both U.S. dollars and Bangladeshi taka. (Financial Express )/(USAID)
 
The ISIS militant group is claiming responsibility for the shooting death of an Italian aid worker in the Gulshan area of Dhaka on September 28. Bangladesh authorities say the man was jogging home after swimming at the American International School when he was gunned down by men on motorcycles. While authorities are still trying to verify the claims made by ISIS, if they are true, it would mark the first deadly attack by the group in Bangladesh, which is a Muslim-majority country. (CNN)