- Building skills in garment production management
- Adopting better people management skills
- Harmonizing codes and audit requirements
- Building awareness of rights and the capacity to enforce them
- Strengthening local audit capacity
- Capacity building and reach on fair trade principles
- Development of training tools to assist replication and expansion of effective approaches.
Objectives:
The RAGS Challenge Fund had been set up to support projects that were aimed at improving working conditions of women and other vulnerable workers in ready-made garment production industries in low-income countries in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa supplying the UK market. The overall objective of RAGS was responsible and ethical production to become the norm in the garment manufacturing sector supplying the UK. The specific objective of RAGS was to stimulate and catalyze sustainable improvements in working conditions for poor and vulnerable workers in garment industries in poor countries through better supply chain practices in the UK and in producer countries. A grant fund totaling £3 million has been made available to support eligible projects over a three-year period (2010-2013). It is expected that some 10-15 projects will be supported during the life of the project. Seven key areas of intervention are supported by RAGS, which were as follows:
Services:
- Created a network of RAGS Grant holders in India (the network should meet quarterly – monthly from time of contract being issued until February 2011 as projects start-up)
- Collected case-studies on project lessons and project management to disseminate to network and to the Fund Managers
- Ensured appropriate collaboration of projects – in particular, to avoid duplication of project scope and work with partners/stakeholders
- Acted as liaison point between DFID Bangladesh and RAGS projects in Bangladesh and India.
- Liaised with other in-country coordinator (in either India/Bangladesh) to pass on specific country lessons
- Acted as representative of RAGS within India, to field press requests, inform other interested local stakeholders etc.
- Carried out site visits at the Fund Manager’s request to support monitoring and evaluation
- Assisted with the organization of in-country outreach and dissemination events as part of Communications Strategy.
Timeframe: October 2011 - December 2013
Realated Countries: Bangladesh, India, Regional
Client(s): DFID
Categories: Social Protection, Large-scale fund management and contracting of consultancy services, Project Management and Implementation
