Context
Bangladesh is the world’s second biggest exporter of clothing. Its garments industry accounts for exports valued at more than EUR 14 billion each year, making it the country’s largest export earner. The approximately 5,500 textile factories provide work for more than four million people, most of them poor women. As such, they are also indirectly responsible for the livelihoods of some 60 million people.
In recent years, labour and environmental laws have increasingly been adapted to meet international standards. Nevertheless, entrepreneurs are still failing to adequately implement the national laws or international standards. Managers are still largely unaware that adherence to social and environmental standards will bring economic benefits in the medium term. Monitoring and enforcement of the laws by state actors is still in its infancy, and until now, the enterprises have lacked suitably qualified personnel to improve their social and environmental standards.
Objective
In the textiles and garments industry, entrepreneurs demonstrate increased adherence to national labour and environmental laws, and to international standards and guidelines.
Approach
The project collaborates with all the relevant actors to develop ways of improving the social and environmental standards of textiles factories. These actors include ministries, authorities, business associations, local suppliers and international buyers, as well as non-governmental organisations and trades unions. The project provides training courses for public labour inspectors and advisors of the associations; it also trains instructors who then act as advisors to the different stakeholders of the garment industry.
The project provides courses for environmental advisors on environmental management and efficient handling of water and chemicals. The advisors then help the textile factories to meet international requirements, such as REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals). The project works with dyeing and washing plants, as well as private and public universities and colleges, in order to support factories with advice on environmentally sound, state-of-the-art processing of industrial waste water and the disposal of chemical residues. It is also training energy auditors to advise factories about energy efficiency.
GIZ is supporting non-governmental organisations committed to upholding workers’ rights, for example the Awaj Foundation in Dhaka and Agrajatra in Chittagong. These NGOs have set up women’s cafés where the female textile workers can learn more about their rights and duties as employees. Legal advice is also available in cases of labour disputes or domestic violence. To date, this assistance has reached around 200,000 employees.
In the wake of a disastrous fire in 2012 in a factory run by Tazreen Fashions Limited and the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Savar in 2013, which killed and injured many people, in August 2013 BMZ provided financial support for those affected, and also for the victims of accidents in the textile sector more generally. The project’s new component for the inclusion of disabled people in vocational training aims to put in place fast-acting support measures for the victims of the building collapse. It will also develop sustainable structures to enable people with disabilities to return to their occupation, and to support their integration in the labour market.
The project is being co-financed by the European Union.
Results achieved so far
Social compliance
• Compliance with social standards, and thus the working conditions for several thousand workers, have improved sustainably in more than 450 factories. For instance, Plexiglas screens attached to sewing machines now protect the workers’ eyes against broken needles; firefighting teams have been trained in initial rapid response measures to deal with factory fires; and an adequate supply of drinking water is now available for the workforce during working hours.
• Women in particular have benefited from training sessions which use posters, films, games and theatre groups to teach them about their fundamental rights and duties in the workplace.
• More than 6,000 legal disputes involving textile employees and their factories’ management have been resolved in out-of-court settlements.
Promotion of environmental standards and ecological efficiency
• In more than 130 textile factories, seminars and workshops have been held for specialised skilled workers, teaching them how to deal with chemicals and manage waste water. There has been a marked decline in the number of workplace accidents and cases of environmental pollution. In addition, it has been possible to improve production conditions and use resources in a more targeted way, which has also led to cost savings.
• Five energy-saving measures have been introduced in more than 50 factories: energy saving light bulbs, insulation, air compressors, steam conduits and servomotors, as well as the generation of energy from solid waste and condensed water, have brought energy savings of up to 20%.
• More than 200 advisors have received training in how to deal with chemicals, process waste water and improve energy efficiency. They are now working as private service providers in these fields.
• Together with Bangladesh’s environmental authority, the project has developed standards and guidelines on the treatment of residual chemical sludge. These are now to be incorporated into the country’s environmental laws.
Skills development for higher productivity and quality
• More than 1,000 women from disadvantaged rural areas have received training as seamstresses, enabling them to enter the garment sector as skilled workers. Demand-oriented curriculums have been developed and two state training institutions equipped, while training has been provided for public-sector teachers.
• The predominance of men at the management level is one of the reasons for the high rate of sexual harassment experienced by women in the workplace. The project has cooperated with private service providers to deliver training to more than 700 experienced women employees to date, qualifying them to work as production and quality managers.
• People employed in middle management positions have a key role to play in implementing social and production standards. More than 250 male and female managers have so far received training in one of two diploma courses in social standards, and in production and quality management. These courses are available at one public and two private technical schools.