The leather industry is the second largest earner of foreign currencies of Bangladesh after RMG. In order to exploit the country’s full potentials in this sector, the Bangladesh Government identified leather as a thrust sector for export. Ample supply of hides and skins, their fine grain pattern, uniform fiber structure, and competitive labor cost contribute to the overall competitiveness.

Most of the Bangladeshi leather goods manufacturers are small to medium-sized enterprises, and the industry has come to a halt in recent months owing to the Covid-19 pandemic. To gauge the impact of the pandemic on leather product and processing factories, LightCastle conducted a survey on 30 factories in the Bhairab and Kishorgonj area during July, 2020.

The interviews have led to insights that give a real-life picture of the actual reach of proposed support systems and the policy course corrections that are pertinent. This paper suggests key support areas that are to be fixated in order for the sector to survive the downturn.