PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will see the partnership between the Government of the Kingdom of Cambodia (the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, and the Ministry of Commerce), the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) and International Labour Organization’s Be tter Factories Cambodia programme extended for another three years, covering a period from January 2020 to December 2022, during which the partners have committed to improve working conditions and improving competitiveness and productivity in the textile and apparel sector and expand the coverage of the MoU to include the travel goods and bag sector of Cambodia.

ILO Better Factories Cambodia Programme will be extended its scope from garment and textile, to also include travel goods and bag industry. Since 2001, the Royal Government of Cambodia has linked trade with labour standards in the garment and textile sector in Cambodia in order to promote compliance with, and effective enforcement of, existing labour law, and to promote labour rights against the Cambodian labour code and internationally recognized core labour standards.

The BFC programme will continue to perform assessments on the working conditions in garment factories. Advisory and training activities on workplace improvement and productivity enhancement will continue to operate regularly on a fee for service basis. BFC will also work with the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training on the implementation of a joint strategy and action plan with the objective to support government’s capacity and ownership to uphold compliance with labour law and support remediation in the garment, footwear and travel goods and bag sectors. Furthermore, BFC will continue to work with GMAC and travel goods and bag manufacturers for the areas of joint collaboration to build factory capacity for sustained compliance and support factories in strengthening their management systems. Click here to download a full press release in English and Khmer.