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News - The Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (Textiles Partnership)

Textile alliance: The Partnership Initiative Tamil Nadu 2.0 successfully starts the second phase

The joint commitment to improved complaint structures in spinning mills and the promotion of stakeholder dialogue continues. The Tamil Nadu Alliance Initiative started its second phase in November 2021. Now the main focus is on around 40 spinning mills in the four districts of Coimbatore, Dindigul, Erode and Tiruppur.

In addition to the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and FEMNET, the four alliance companies Tchibo, the Otto Group, KiK and HUGO BOSS AG are once again participating in the project. As in the first project phase, the local NGO SAVE organizes the implementation on site.

Rising numbers of infections and renewed lockdowns in the Indian state caused delays. But now the project is gaining momentum and the first training sessions and factory visits could take place.

Building on the experience and success of the first phase of the project

The first phase of the Alliance Initiative (BI) can look back on some successes: In around 200 spinning mills, a total of 24,500 workers and 2,000 factory managers were trained on labour and human rights standards and more than 240 complaints committees were set up. In addition, regular exchanges at district and federal level between stakeholders from government, business, trade unions and civil society helped to create more trust and transparency and to formulate joint action plans.

Nevertheless, the participants also identified potential for improvement after the first phase of the project: the involvement of management in spinning mills and factories, the effectiveness of the complaints committees set up and the link between the training and dialogue components. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the fragility of the structures: Although the participants were able to use the networks well for emergency aid and prevention measures, the dialogue processes came to a halt as far as possible after the outbreak of the pandemic.

BI Tamil Nadu 2.0: Increased participation, more exchanges, but fewer spinning mills

In order to respond appropriately to the challenges of the first phase, the members of the BI focus in the new project concept on a stronger linking of the modules, more intensive participation of the German companies as well as an improved complaint system through external monitoring measures.

Instead of reaching as many spinning mills as possible, they now choose 10 pilot factories per district in order to be able to expand the training in terms of scope and quality. Here, the trainers proposed by Tchibo for the project contribute their expertise in terms of training concept and company approach in order to work together with SAVE for a Greater acceptance and participation on the part of factory management. The trainers were part of the ‘Worldwide Enhancement of Social Quality (WE) Programme’, which Tchibo launched in 2008 as a Public Private Partnership with GIZ. New are also independent persons for the monitoring. They should monitor and review the progress and functionality of the factory's internal complaint committees and exchange ideas with the workers outside the factories.

Through the respective district coordinators of SAVE, who are responsible for the training in the spinning mills as well as for the work of the district committees, a direct Exchanges between the Dialogue and Training modules created. The district committees continue to be composed of representatives of the government, companies and associations, as well as NGOs and trade unions. They set concrete milestones to address the structural problems in the spinning mills and factories and to improve working conditions in the long term.

About the newly created module "Brand engagement" The participation of German companies is also to be intensified: In addition to the regular exchange with all stakeholders, this module is about making your own supply chains more transparent. In addition, the companies are to accompany the project at factory level: Tchibo, the Otto Group, KiK and HUGO BOSS AG each nominated one or two of the 40 participating spinning mills and support SAVE in contacting and further communication.

Pandemic and project launch

Increasing numbers of infections in Tamil Nadu have delayed the start of the project and made implementation more difficult: Spinning mills were closed for visitors, travel bans prevented the exchange between the WE trainers and SAVE and attendance meetings of the committees were not possible. Nevertheless, by March 2022, around a third of the spinning mills had been acquired, the project team trained and the first "assessment" week had been implemented with the WE trainers. In this course, the trainers have already visited five spinning mills in the four districts. On the German side, in addition to the kick-off event with the BI members, regular voting meetings with the Dutch Factory support program The Freedom Fund.