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Building Responsible Value Chains in Asia through the Promotion of Decent Work in Business Operations - Final evaluation

eval_number:

3374

eval_url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/3374

location:

country:

Bangladesh

region:

Asia and the Pacific

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eval_title:

Building Responsible Value Chains in Asia through the Promotion of Decent Work in Business Operations - Final evaluation

recommendations:

date:

2025-06-04 00:00:00.0

themes:

theme:

Enterprises

category:

Small or micro - enterprises

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action_plan:

In Bangladesh, ILO Dhaka has signed an Letter Of Intent with Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), Ministry of Commerce (MOC) and UNDP to expand to tier-2 and other sectors. The plan is to proceed with a tailored version of BWB’s factory engagement framework in four sectors-namely light engineering (bicycle manufacturing), plastic, leather footwear and agro-processing (shrimp)- and RMG enterprises beyond tier-1. Objectives include capacitating of associations and enterprises, enhancing institutional/secretariat (governance gap) level of knowledge on the sectoral contexts and their needs, training modules from the ILO and UNDP in the area of Decent Work and Responsible Business to be utilized and tested for adaptability in these non-RMG sectors, and promotion of policies for fair and rules-based trade and investment to promote seamless business formalization. In Cambodia, BFC and its partners have discussed and taken initial steps to focus on lower-tier enterprises (subcontracting), including informal small and medium-sized businesses. At its 56th meeting on 16 December 2024, the BFC Project Advisory Committee, comprising representatives from the Cambodian government, employers' associations, and trade unions, reaffirmed their commitment to joint efforts over the next three years and discussed subcontracting in the sector. A key milestone in this effort was the joint workshop held on 20 February 2025, co-organized by BFC, the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT), the Ministry of Commerce (MOC), and the Textile, Apparel, Footwear and Travel Goods Association (TAFTAC). The workshop introduced the ILO’s subcontracting mapping tool and facilitated participatory discussions to identify key challenges and opportunities. This laid the foundation for expanding awareness and strengthening compliance support for lower-tier enterprises. Following the workshop, two major initiatives were launched under the MLVT–BFC Joint Action Plan 2025–2026: the development of regulatory guidelines for subcontracting enterprises, led by MLVT, and a joint awareness-raising campaign targeting subcontracting factories, implemented collaboratively by MLVT, BFC, and TAFTAC. These efforts represent an important move toward addressing compliance and oversight gaps within lower-tier operations. The updated Joint Action Plan includes a dedicated subcontracting strategy, positioning it as a foundational step toward future outreach to a broader spectrum of enterprises. In Vietnam, BWV has adapted its support package to make it more relevant to the SMEs and lower tier factories. Among over 500 factories participating in the programme, SMEs account for almost 20%. In addition, BWV has expanded its support to lower tier factories in garment and footwear sectors. For non-RMG export oriented sectors, BWV has collaborated with the tripartite partners, particularly the sectoral associations such as Viet Nam Electronics Industry and Universities to share tools and methodology so that they can support those potential sectors.

management_response:

Completed

progress:

Achieved

admin_units:

CO-Bangkok

title:

5) Expand the outreach efforts gradually to engage a broader spectrum of stakeholders, particularly towards enterprises of Tiers 2 and 3 including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Since the new project by METI and ILO is not implemented in the three BW countries, this request from many stakeholders is directed to the respective governments and employers’ organisations as well as to BW, specifically to raise awareness, and, as far as possible, to adapt and extend the assessment, advisory and training programmes to RMG enterprises across different tiers (2 and 3). Some stakeholders also suggested to expand to non-RMG export-oriented sectors.

project_symbols:

NO_DC_SYMBOL_111

url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/recommendations/2297100

information_source:

Country Office

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