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Improving working conditions in the ready-made Garment Sector in Bangladesh - Midterm Evaluation

eval_number:

2158

eval_url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/2158

lessons_learned:

themes:

theme:

Labour standards

category:

International Labour Standards

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comments:

RMGP teams, particularly components with capacity building activities, monitoring and evaluation department, and even social partners and agencies for which the activities are designed. Other ongoing CO may also be the users/beneficiaries from this lesson.

challenges:

Unusual urgency and rush may have caused some gap. Lack of data and weak institutions resulted in more time required to assess the need for preliminary safety assessments. Strong monitoring arrangements and periodic diagnostic analysis of results framework could have helped to expedite effective implementation.

success:

RMGP still has its half of lifetime and the emerging shortcomings could be addressed with stronger management set up and focus on achieving not only outputs but also outcomes.

context:

RMGP evolved as an emergency response in an unusual situation. Due to ILO’s past country experience and engagement with social partners, it could put together five befitting components quickly to give the project a comprehensive quality. In addition, some of ILO CO’s ongoing complementary projects were also handy to support the RMGP. Urgency to roll out the project had its limitation too. For other similar project in other countries in future, similar limitations and gaps need to be identified and addressed at an early stage to ensure effectiveness.

description:

A complex project design requires additional social preparation time and proper sequencing of interventions. The project design is complex with five components and a large number of implementation partners representing diversified interest groups. Moreover, when on the ground reality is not clear, it takes time to establish bearings in place. Virtually all implementation partners had weak capacity, in terms of both skills and number. Improving working conditions in RMG sector was not a priority prior to Tazreen fire and Rana Plaza (RP) building collapse. The 2006 Labour Law was weak and it had no clear implementation rules. Focus was on rehabilitation and reintegration of workers who were victims or survivors of RP collapse and ensuring safety of the workers in the factories. The three-year project design had little flexibility in properly sequencing the components. As a result, capacity-building activities commenced without any institutional analysis and training needs assessment. A sequential planning of activities along with safety assessments may have been more effective.

administrative_issues:

Staff need to remain focused on delivering development effectiveness. Revision and simplification of results framework and logical framework would help the project to stay on track. Fund utilization has been very low and hence calls for no cost extension of the project so that planned activities could be implemented and outputs and outcomes achieved.

url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/lessons/204307

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location:

country:

Bangladesh

region:

Asia and the Pacific

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eval_title:

Improving working conditions in the ready-made Garment Sector in Bangladesh - Midterm Evaluation