Strengthening Supplier Capacity to Collect and Use Gender-Disaggregated Supply Chain Data

In April, the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles and the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) kicked off a joint project that aims at strengthening suppliers’ capacity to collect and use gender-disaggregated supply chain data. The new project starts where an earlier cooperation between both organisations had left off.  

The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) launched its Gender Data Initiative in December 2021 with the aim of developing an understanding on why collecting and analyzing gender dis-aggregated data is necessary for effective Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD). The Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (PST) has been working, together with its members, on the topic of gender data since 2020. In March 2022, ETI and the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles developed the Gender Data Guidance together with Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), Fair Wear Foundation, the Dutch Agreement for Sustainable Garments and Textiles as well as Sedex. The document presents ways to collect gender-disaggregated data from supply chains based on BSR’s Gender Data and Impact (GDI) Framework and Tool.  

Gender equality became a focus topic for the PST in 2023. The work of the Textile Partnership is guided by relevant international standards and frameworks such as the ILO Conventions, the UN Convention on the Status of Women, the Gender Dimensions of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the 2030 Agenda.  

While disseminating the Gender Data Guidance, one of the key areas of feedback from brands was that suppliers lacked the capacity to provide accurate and reliable gender-disaggregated data. The absence of the same means that brands conduct less informed due diligence processes, affecting their ability to improve working conditions for women in the garment sector. The joint project aims at changing this: by implementing capacity building measures for suppliers and developing a business case for the collection of gender-disaggregated data, their capacity to collect, analyse and understand such data will be improved. The measures will be implemented at Indian supplier factories of PST members Hugo Boss and KiK, as well as ETI members The Very Group and Morrisons, who nominated their suppliers for this project. Activities include the conduct of a needs assessment in the participating factories, the implementation of a capacity building programme, and the development of guidance and learning products that can be used by other suppliers and companies.  

After the kick-off, the next step of the project is currently in preparation, which will be the needs assessment at the factories. There is also an ongoing exchange with the Partnership Initiative „Gender Data Gap“. In this context, a tool for collecting gender data in Tunisia is currently being developed. Thus, the outputs of both projects will be complimentary and help members of the Textile Partnership to capacitate further suppliers in collecting and correctly interpreting gender-disaggregated data.