Bangladesh has made immense progress in its textile and apparel sector in the past few decades since its independence. And we must acknowledge that this has been possible thanks to the colossal contributions of people like Kihak Sung who have done very commendable jobs to make the country a famous exporter of apparel and textile in the global market. As a symbol of appreciation, the government has really done an excellent job by awarding the Youngone Corporation’s chairman Kihak Sung with honorary citizenship of Bangladesh as recognition of his remarkable contribution to the field of the country’s apparel and textile industry. This initiative has not only been a nice opportunity to express gratitude to Sung but also an inspiring example even to others who have been making contributions to the social and economic development of our country.

Undeniably, Sung has done something outstanding for Bangladesh. He has created employment for more than 70,000 people across Bangladesh through his company (Youngone) and even reinvested all of Youngone Corporation’s earnings back into Bangladesh. The company has also played a key role in promoting female employment in the industry. The unique features that have really distinguished his company from the other ones in the country’s apparel industry are that it produces high quality apparel and provides the employers with best support and benefits.

Whereas the many RMG workers in the country have to face a lot of woes at their workplace and suffer for not getting timely payment, workers of his company do find a different treatment and remain highly satisfied thanks to its good discipline and worker-friendly rules. Indeed, Sung has set an example which our business leaders and entrepreneurs should emulate.

This honour has been awarded to the business leader on an auspicious occasion at the Bangladesh Investment Summit-2025. As the government organised this investment summit to showcase the country’s manufacturing facilities to the foreign investors, this proves that it is heading towards the right direction with an eye to encouraging foreign investors to invest more in the country.

If Bangladesh has to keep up the progress that it has made in its industrial field so far, it should recognise and appreciate the efforts of many more such people who are doing excellent work for it in this way — both the employers and the employees — to create employment and boost the country’s economy.