The government of Bangladesh says the Remediation Coordination Cell (RCC) – effectively an internal replacement for the Accord made up of internal factory inspectors and engineers – is now ready to take over Accord’s work. The handover of the work has been going on for some time. Bangladesh does not plan to extend the tenure of Accord beyond November 30 which could potentially endanger the lives of garment factory workers. The tenure of Accord was initially supposed to end in May but the government extended it by six months.

There have been international calls by MEPs and labour rights NGOs for this deadline to be extended, however, Mujibul Haque Chunnu, state minister for labour and employment, has now confirmed the timeline will be adhered to. More than 50 MEPs recently signed a letter by Dutch MEP Agnes Jongerius, urging EU Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström, to take action to avert premature closure of the Bangladesh Accord.