Categories: Publication
MSPs on garments and textiles in Germany and the Netherlands – Towards achieving collective impact?
Garments and textiles value chains offer opportunities for inclusive growth in many developing countries in Asia and increasingly also in Africa. They are faced, however, with many social and environmental sustainability challenges. This briefing note provides insights on national multi-stakeholder-partnerships that have been developed in both Germany and the Netherlands to improve social and environmental conditions along the entire supply chain, and looks at the role of the EU in such a context.
The brief discusses the set-up and progress, the similarities and the differences of the German Textile Partnership and the Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garments and Textiles (AGT). It highlights that these partnerships benefit from a high political level buy-in, which has helped them take off and move forward. It also discusses the relevance of a whole-of-government (different ministries with different portfolios working together) approach. While operating differently, both multi-stakeholder-partnerships face challenges because of the nature of the partnership itself: i.e. working together with entities with different interests, expectations and objectives.
Both the Textiles Partnership and the AGT seek to enhance cooperation across countries at the EU level, to create a more level playing field for businesses, thus avoiding the creation of a comparative advantage for companies not adhering to international social and environmental standards and make it easier for companies operating in different EU Member States to engage. Based on the Dutch and German experience and on the interests of stakeholders, the brief also looks at the potential that such partnerships could have and what this could mean for transnational cooperation.
Garments and textiles value chains offer opportunities for inclusive growth in many developing countries in Asia and increasingly also in Africa. They are faced, however, with many social and environmental sustainability challenges. This briefing note provides insights on national multi-stakeholder-partnerships that
have been developed in both Germany and the Netherlands to improve social and environmental conditions along the entire supply chain, and looks at the role of the EU in such a context.
The brief discusses the set-up and progress, the similarities and the differences of the German Textile Partnership and the Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garments and Textiles (AGT). It highlights that these partnerships benefit from a high political level buy-in, which has helped them take off and move forward. It also discusses the relevance of a whole-of-government (different ministries with different portfolios working together) approach. While operating differently, both multi-stakeholder-partnerships face challenges because of the nature of the partnership itself: i.e. working together with entities with different interests, expectations and objectives.
Both the Textiles Partnership and the AGT seek to enhance cooperation across countries at the EU level, to create a more level playing field for businesses, thus avoiding the creation of a comparative advantage for companies not adhering to international social and environmental standards and make it easier for companies operating in different EU Member States to engage. Based on the Dutch and German experience and on the interests of stakeholders, the brief also looks at the potential that such partnerships could have and what this could mean for transnational cooperation.