In practice
What the two associations do
BGMEA describes its work as policy advocacy to the government, services to members, and work on workers' rights and social compliance in factories1. Its member services include legal advice on labor and compliance issues and trade information for members2. BKMEA describes itself as an apex trade body for knitwear. It lists policy advocacy, compliance and green-industry consultancy, training, and a one-stop service point for UD and UP services3.
That last service is tied to export orders. BKMEA runs an online utilization declaration (UD) service for knitwear manufacturers, and its list of documents for a UD includes the export LC or contract copy, the back-to-back LC copy for imported or local inputs, a consumption report and a sample4. BKMEA's members portal also lists certificate services, including certificates of origin5.
What membership shows, and what it does not
Membership means the company has joined the association and appears in its records. BKMEA publishes a pre-membership checklist for new factories. It covers documents such as the trade license, fire license and factory license, along with industrial safety items such as exits and fire extinguishers, and it has a field for the visit date6. The checklist shows what the association looks at before a factory joins. It does not describe a membership as a certificate of product quality, capacity or on-time delivery. Neither association's "at a glance" page does either1 3.
Membership also shows up in export paperwork. The Chief Controller of Imports and Exports asks for an up-to-date membership certificate from a recognized chamber or trade association with an application for an Export Registration Certificate7.
How buyers use the member directories
Both associations publish searchable member lists:
BGMEA "Search a Member" lets you search by keyword, factory zone, unit name, BGMEA registration number, product type (knit, woven or sweater), principal product and major export countries8.
BKMEA member search lets you search by company name, zone, member type (ordinary, associate, or associate buying house), membership number and category9.
Use the directories to check a claim. Search for the exact company name and the membership number the supplier gave you, and check that the listed zone and product type fit what you were told. Note the member type too. A buying house is a different kind of business from a factory that makes the goods.
On Exportain, association membership is not one of the checks behind a trust badge. The verification checks behind the badges are identity, phone and email, business registration, export registration (the ERC) and facility photos10. See how supplier verification works on Exportain.
Related terms
ERC (Export Registration Certificate): the export registration issued by the CCI&E.
How supplier verification works on Exportain: what each trust badge checks.
LC (Letter of Credit): including the back-to-back LCs listed in UD paperwork.
