Bangladesh has approved a near doubling of the minimum wage for its garment industry in a bid to end months of unrest by workers who produce clothes for retailers such as Marks and Spencer, H&M and Walmart.

The country’s nearly 2.5m garment workers – among the lowest paid in the world – will see their monthly minimum pay rise to $43 from just $23.

Workers across Asia have over the past few months become more vocal in their demands for better working conditions in the manufacturing sector. Factory owners in China, for example, have recently been dogged by rare strikes over long hours and low wages.

Bangladesh’s increase came just days after Sheikh Hasina Wajed, the prime minister, told parliament that the old wages were “not only insufficient, but also inhuman”.

However, the increase fell short of the $75 per month workers had demanded. Factory owners are uncertain whether it will serve to end the labour unrest that had been disrupting production in recent months.

Four years of rising food prices and no salary increases in Bangladesh have taken their toll. Last month workers at one of the country’s busiest export processing zones engaged in violent clashes with police, and ransacked factories, forcing the temporary shutdown of the industrial estate.

“I hope they will not be unhappy,” said Abdus Salam Murshedy, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. “In the present circumstances, it is reasonable.”

Bangladesh’s garment exports are worth about $12bn a year, from just $5bn eight years ago, as western brands have switched from China to lower-cost alternatives. Garments account for about 80 per cent of Bangladesh’s exports.

The new wages, which will take effect in November, will bring Bangladesh’s wages in line with those in Cambodia, the world’s next-lowest cost producer.

Andrew Jassin, a New York-based consultant to the fashion industry, said the salary rise would not have a detrimental impact on Bangladesh’s garment industry but could lead to a slight upward pressure on prices for retailers.

However, unions and charities such as ActionAid argue that the increase still falls short of the £98 ($153) per month that it estimates would allow garment workers to afford nutritious food, health and education for their families.