The recent disruptions in supply chains due to the COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the need to diversify the sourcing of critical products. Consequently, European and American garment manufacturers and retailers are increasingly interested in exploring alternative sustainable production and sourcing options. Currently, the textile and apparel sector in Ghana faces major challenges in meeting the requirements of international buyers. Quality requirements can often not be met due to lack of information or lack of knowledge and financial resources.
In cooperation with the International Trade Centre, the Alliance for Product Quality in Africa aims to support Ghanaian textile and apparel companies and their personnel to meet quality requirements of European buyers. Through (online) trainings on foundational quality management and a coaching program to implement quality management systems, product quality-related capacities of staff in textile companies is enhanced.
The online training provides quality managers in these companies with the knowledge and skills required to design, implement, maintain and continually improve a management system based on ISO management standards, as well as to understand the role and responsibility of a quality manager in such a system.
At the same time, selected enterprises receive on-site coaching and training to implement quality management systems based on ISO 9001:2015, adjusted to their specific needs.
These activities lay the foundation for the successful introduction of textile-specific standards (e.g. BSCI, GOTS) by our cooperation partners within the Africa Fashion and Textile Accelerator Network (Africa FAN). Africa FAN is a project under the Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition" aimed at increasing the sourcing of sustainable textile and apparel by European fashion companies from some selected production hubs in Africa in order to create jobs.
