Dhaka, June 7 -- The leather industry risks losing its long-held competitive edge unless persistent environmental, infrastructural and access to finance challenges are addressed, experts warned at a webinar on Saturday.

They called for urgent reforms to restore confidence and strengthen the sector's export potential.

They also identified slow progress in value addition, limited product diversification, complex licensing procedures, an unfavourable tax regime and a shortage of skilled manpower as key factors hindering the industry's growth.

The observations were made at a webinar titled "Is the Future of Bangladesh's Leather Industry Losing Its Momentum?" organised by the Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC).

The discussion w...