Twenty-eight representatives from leading garment brands who came to Cambodia October 9-10, 2008 for a two-day meeting of the International Buyers' Forum are recommending that their companies continue sourcing from Cambodia.
Speaking at the closing luncheon of the meeting, Ms. Karla Quizon, Manager of IFC's Program for Environment and Social Sustainability in the Mekong Region, said the meeting was very productive. "This year even more brand representatives attended the meeting and by the end, promised even greater engagement to ensure that Cambodia's industry continues to thrive for the long term."
Participants remain very optimistic about Cambodia's garment industry, said Mr. Tuomo Poutiainen, Chief Technical Advisor of ILO's Better Factories Cambodia program. "Participants told me that subject to customer demand, on-going monitoring from Better Factories Cambodia and continuing good results, their companies are very positive about producing garments in Cambodia."
Membership in the Forum, which is organized by IFC and the International Labor Organization, comprises 32 brands which buy 60% of Cambodia's garment exports. Cambodia's garment sector is worth $ 2.6 billion and is critically important to the estimated 350,000 workers and their extended family members who depend on the industry (a total of at least 1.7 million people).
The Forum, which takes place twice a year in Cambodia and Hong Kong, was convened by ILO and IFC to discuss the current work and future of ILO 's Better Factories Cambodia, and to discuss how to support increasing the competitiveness of the industry so that it continues to survive. BFC provides labor monitoring, remediation, and training for exporting garment factories. The Forum is implemented in partnership with and funded by MPDF, a private sector development initiative in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Lao PDR managed by IFC, whose donors are Australia, Canada, Finland, IFC, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.
Buyers' representatives met initially on their own for half a day, then separately with manufacturers, and then unions. On the second day, all four garment industry stakeholders - Forum members, manufacturers, unions and government met together to create a joint vision for the future of the industry.
Mr.Tuomo Poutiainen said that the meeting was a great success. "It confirmed both the relevance and importance of Better Factories Cambodia and stakeholders' belief and support for its new directions. There was consensus too that industry actors need to work more closely together, and BFC needs to move beyond monitoring, and expand training and remediation. This view was widely shared by all the stakeholders."
Ms. Naurin Muzaffar, Senior Manager, Global Partnership, for Gap Inc. praised evolution of BFC and the Forum. "Over the years, Forum meetings keep getting better and better. The engagement with the unions in this Forum was the best yet. The discussion was well structured and productive. BFC has also evolved greatly from just monitoring, to adding advisory services, capacity building and all the mechanisms required for these."
H&M's Code of Conduct Manager, Mr. Erik Carlborg, said that compliance with labor standards is a very important part of H&M's business strategy, and that they firmly believe that BFC is a positive contributor to the good compliance level in the Cambodian garment industry.
GMAC's representative, Mr. Kaing Monika, spoke about what the industry is doing to improve national competitiveness. "As this is the global industry, it always has to do with global competition, so building national competitiveness is the key challenge for us" he said. He added that reducing transaction costs is very important for enhancing competitiveness, and the government has been very responsive in this regard, but given the current economic situation, we need more support. Having harmonized industrial relations is also crucial for stable production and buyers' confidence. Last, but not least, there is a need to raise workers' awareness about their jobs. They should have the motivation to not only improve their current skills, but also to learn new skills."
Union representatives attending the Forum asked for buyer support in key areas including promoting collective bargaining rights and freedom of association. Speaking for the Coalition of Cambodia Apparel Workers' Democratic Union and more than ten other unions participating in the Forum, Mr. Ath Thorn, CCAWDU President, said unions were concerned about how workers would cope with high inflation, and asked buyers to place long-term orders with factories so that workers have better job security.
In his address to the buyers and other stakeholders, H.E. Cham Prasidh, Senior Minister and Minster of Commerce, stressed the importance of BFC. "The monitoring scheme of ILO's Better Factories Cambodia is a world class system that helps buyers trust Cambodia as a source for garments. I have received many requests from other countries to come and learn from our experience here. The government will continue to lend full support to this project and develop more mechanisms for dialogue with the unions and GMAC."
With regard to improving competitiveness, David Adrian Ross, General Manager of New Island Clothing (Cambodia) Ltd. said he is very optimistic about the prospects for improving Cambodian garment workers' skills and productivity. "The productivity, quality standards and commitment from my workforce is second to none. We are also very proud of the fact that our factory is nearly 100% managed by Cambodians. At the end of the day, the objective is not to employ expatriates, it's to employ Cambodians."
During the two-day Forum, members told ILO and IFC staff that they were very pleased at the way the Forum gave them an opportunity to hear directly about the concerns of factories, unions and government. "Forum members say that in the coming months they plan to continue collaborating with these stakeholders to find solutions to the problems raised in the Forum," said Tuomo Poutiainen.
"As for the future of Better Factories Cambodia, it was clear from the meeting that Cambodia's garment sector continues to be special and attractive to global garment brands, and that ethical purchasing remains an important factor in the success of the industry."
