SNV Bangladesh launches Working with Women - II project

Building on the success of a pilot initiative, SNV launched the second phase of the Working with Women project on 11 March 2018. The second phase of the project will set the stage for a sectoral change in the RMG sector in Bangladesh through improved health and well-being of workers, with a special focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

The second phase of the Working with Women project was officially launched during an event held at the Lakeshore Hotel in Gulshan, in Dhaka. The launching ceremony featured a number of presentations focusing on the different aspects of this new phase, including the Inclusive Business models to be scaled up under the same project. SNV also showed a video infographic and an audio-visual promo of the new project’s phase. Representatives from different government agencies, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, NGOs, development organisations, private sector, partner factories and buyers were present at the event.

Funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Working with Women - II project will implement 3 Inclusive Business (IB) models in 10 partner factories for a sector-wide expansion to harness market mechanisms for delivering win-win solutions for businesses and the workforce.

The new phase of the project follows a successful pilot initiative (2014-2017) where 10 IB models were implemented in 20 factories to testify the viability of SRHR investments in the garment sector. During September 2021, the project will collaborate with 200 factories in Bangladesh to ensure access to health, including SRHR of garment workers. The Inclusive Business models focus on three key areas---gender-based violence, health insurance and menstrual hygiene management.