During inspections in Pakistan this week, the CEO of textile company KiK, Patrick Zahn, announced a stronger engagement of his company towards more safety for workers and buildings. In this context Zahn emphasized that it remains his goal to bring the successful initiative Accord to Pakistan.
The Accord is an independent, legally binding agreement between companies from the textile industry and trade unions in Pakistan and aims to create a safer, more socially
responsible, and healthier garment and textile industry.
KiKs engagement in Pakistan
Thanks to the Building Safety Initiative that KiK launched in 2017, the company already has significant experience in Pakistan. For the CEO of KiK, Patrick Zahn, it is also personally important to initiate a strong agreement for Pakistan with the Accord to be able to achieve further improvements: “In the last five years, we have already achieved a lot in the areas of fire protection and electrical safety with our ‘Pakistan Building Safety Initiative’. With Accord Pakistan, we can work with many other stakeholders to ensure better standards for textile production.” The South Asian country is one of the most important exporters of textiles after Bangladesh.
He therefore called on the factory owners, trade unions and retailers involved in the agreement “to put aside their own interests shortly before the goal is reached and to bring about a swift and comprehensive solution for the sake of the thousands of employees“.
Pakistan Building Safety Initiative
To reinforce his demand, he declared a voluntary commitment for his company and signed a “Memorandum of Understanding” with local stakeholders on Thursday.
After the signing, which took place in the presence of the German Consul General, Dr. Rüdiger Lotz, the KiK CEO said, “I welcome the fact that we are close to a breakthrough with the Accord. I appeal to all those involved to pave the way now quickly. With the planned safety training, complaint mechanisms and health committees, we can reach over one million textile workers in 700 factories.” He said KiK was proud to have actively pursued this agreement and to be able to facilitate a
new level of social responsibility for the textile industry. This is also of great importance against the backdrop of the new Supply Chain Act, he said, to document the serious efforts being made to promote change in this area.
The successful concept of Accord
The Accord Pakistan will be modeled on the successful Accord Bangladesh. This alliance has led to an entire industrial sector in a developing country being transformed from the ground up. Since the Accord was established, there have been no major disasters in the textile industry in Bangladesh. The aim of the Accord in Pakistan is to build on this successful model.
