USAID, US private sectors sign MoU to help female workers influenced by pandemic
USAID and a consortium folks private sector have signed a deal to greatly help alleviate the hardships of female employees in their supply-chains damaged by the coronavirus pandemic in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.
US Agency for International Development (USAID) Deputy Administrator Bonnie Glick and Steve Lamar, president and ceo of the American Apparel and Footwear Association, signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the third gross annual Indo-Pacific Business Forum hosted nearly by the government out of Vietnam on October 28-29, said a USAID statement.
The participating companies and industry associations in the consortium include Carter's, Inc.; Gap, Inc.; Global Brands Group; Levi Strauss & Company; Nike; Tapestry; Target; VF Corporation; Walmart; the American Apparel and Footwear Association; the National Retail Federation; the Retail Industry Leaders Association; and the US Fashion Industry Association.
With unprecedented speed and scale, the Covid-19 pandemic has already established a devastating impact on global supply-chains, disrupting trade and investment, putting frontline staff at risk, and eliminating the jobs of an incredible number of other workers, especially women, said the statement.
The apparel, footwear, and fashion-accessories sector in Asia has been among the most-affected industries, challenged by constraints on supply and demand that arose from stay-at-home orders, non permanent closures of businesses, stoppages in production, backlogs in shipment, and cargo delays.
"The MOU establishes an intent for USAID and the consortium to interact over the year ahead to ease hardships faced by AFFA personnel in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam," said USAID.
Such efforts, in collaboration with local partners, will aim to create a more resilient apparel, footwear, fashion-apparel sector and workforce, improve the rights and welfare of workers in the factories, and empower women workforce in the sector, it added.
