22.0 million (USD)

Product Line	IFC Investment (million USD)
Risk Management
Guarantee
Loan	22.0
Equity

* These investment figures are indicative

Bhaluka, Mymensingh, Bangladesh.

Stakeholder's impacts: i. Employment growth: The Project will create 5,500 additional jobs, mostly for women. Additionally, the number of temporary workers required for the construction at its peak is 300. ii. Employee skills/know-how: The Project is going to attract skilled recruits and further develop their skill sets through various training program required by the new technologies and product range, and thus adding to the skilled workers base in Bangladesh. iii. Effect on emissions and waste generation: EKCL's new factory will be a LEED certified green factory. Supported by IFC's Advisory Program Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT), the factory will focus on water, wastewater, and chemicals conservation and energy efficiency. Market impact: i. Contribution to Market Creation: The Project, along with IFC's advisory services engagements in Bangladesh, has the potential to promote greater market sustainability and integration in the RMG sector in Bangladesh. ii. Impact on market emissions and waste generation: The project, along with IFC's advisory services engagements in Bangladesh, will help foster adoption of environmental and social sustainability principles by firms and consumers across the sector through direct capacity building channels and demonstration effects as a result of EKCL's success. iii. Increasing manufacturing complexity: The Project is expected to upgrade the company to a more value adding level, involving advanced products, innovative product development, automated production technology and up-grading of professional skills of the personnel. It could potentially be the model that other factories will follow as Bangladesh is climbing up to higher value garment products.

i. Provide long-term foreign exchange financing which would otherwise be difficult to secure in the current market scenario to support a local player to expand its core business. ii. Continue to integrate EKCL into various RMG/Textile-focused IFC advisory programs such as the Buyers' Forum and Better Works programs, which are geared towards improving compliance, competitiveness, energy efficiency, and labor welfare at firm and industry levels. iii. Assist EKCL to formulate and implement E&S action plan to expand social/labor management systems for inclusion of environmental, occupational, health and safety (OHS) guidelines and enhance OHS management systems.

This is a Category B project according to IFC’s Policy on Environmental and Social Sustainability because a limited number of specific environmental and social (E&S) impacts may result which can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to generally recognized performance standards, guidelines or design criteria. 

Key E&S issues associated with this project include: company’s staffing, systems and procedures to assess and manage E&S risk and impacts of the project during both construction and operations; assurance of fair, safe and healthy working conditions in compliance with the local regulatory requirements and relevant Performance Standards during construction and operation of the proposed facility; resource efficiency of the operations (energy and water); monitoring and management of air emissions, wastewater treatment and discharge, solid waste disposal; life and fire safety management including emergency preparedness and response, structural and electrical safety for the existing and proposed facility, and engagement with the local communities and other stakeholders in compliance with PSs.

Please refer to the related Environmental and Social Review Summary (ESRS) document for this project.

Please refer to the Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP) tab in the related Environmental and Social Review Summary (ESRS) document for this project.