Dhaka, July 7 -- Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir on Tuesday said the government has taken a comprehensive reform programme to revive Bangladesh's leather sector, improve environmental compliance and transform it into an export industry worth more than US$10 billion.

Replying to a notice raised in Parliament by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami MP Shahjahan Chowdhury, he acknowledged the long-standing crisis in the country's leather industry, particularly after the relocation of tanneries from Hazaribagh to Savar.

The minister said there was no disagreement over the importance of the issue and admitted that although there might be slight differences in statistics, the overall problems facing the sector were well recognised.

He said ...