UNICEF celebrates Better Business for Children initiative with leading garment factories

Dhaka, 15 May 2018:  UNICEF today celebrates the commitments to children of 10 garment manufacturers as the pioneers of Better Business for Children in Bangladesh.

Since 2017, UNICEF has been working with the 10 garment manufacturers who employ more than 32,000 workers including some 19,456 female workers. The programme called Better Business for Children is designed to empower businesses to fully explore and understand how their business touches on the lives of children.

Every business has an impact on the lives of children, yet knowledge and action to address these impacts is still relatively low. The Better Business for Children programme supports the businesses through in depth assessments. This in turn helps them build this knowledge and use the findings to develop strategies that respect and support the rights of children.

At the event, each of the 10 businesses signed action plans outlining their commitments to integrate action for children into the core of their operations across the key relevant areas.

“The private sector is a critical partner to UNICEF Bangladesh in advancing our work for children. While the private sector plays an important role in poverty eradication, we need to ensure that business growth happens in an inclusive way for all children.” said Sheema Sen Gupta, Officer in Charge, UNICEF Bangladesh.

The assessments analysed business performance against ten key areas including maternity rights, child care, education, water sanitation and hygiene, healthcare and support for communities where worker’s live.  During the assessment process, the views of some 1,215 workers were captured through direct surveys by UNICEF’s implementing partner, Phulki.

“With UNICEF, we’re committing to putting children’s rights at the heart of our business. The insights from engaging with this programme are proving to be very valuable for ensuring child and family friendly policies and practices.” said M.A. Quader Anu, Deputy Managing Director & Group CEO of DBL Group.

“The action plans are established in collaboration with the factories and are designed to deliver positive results for both children and for business. What we want to see next is further evidence that an investment in children’s rights is a sound investment in business.” said Simon Pickup, CSR Specialist, UNICEF Bangladesh.

At the event, UNICEF also welcomed a new factory into the programme and expects that in coming months, an additional 16 factories will start their engagement with Better Business for Children.  With the support of the private sector, UNICEF focuses not just on creating change inside workplaces, but also on strengthening the communities where workers live.