Efforts continue to ensure garment sector is free of forced labour — gov’t

AMMAN — The removal of Jordan from a US forced labour list is a “positive affirmation of the outstanding relationship” between Washington and Amman, Trade Minister Yarub Qudah has said. 

The US Department of Labour (DOL) removed garments produced in Jordan from its 2016 Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorisation Act list in late September, as “the incidence of forced labour in the production of garments in Jordan has been significantly reduced”, a US DOL report read. 

“We respect labour compliance, and hope to build on all our reform achievements in this area, to further enhance this sector,” Qudah said, according to a statement by the Jordan Garments, Accessories, and Textiles Exporters’ Association (JGATE).

“We hope that buyers in the US, Europe and all across the globe choose Jordan as a sourcing and investment destination,” the minister added. 

Garments produced in Jordan had been on the forced labour list since its first publication in 2009, due to alleged violations of international labour law suffered by migrant workers in the local textile industry in 2006, JGATE said, adding that the sector has worked hard since then to improve. 

“The sector has implemented a series of improvements of paramount importance to attract international buyers throughout the years,” said Dina Khayyat, the chairperson of JGATE, which campaigned for Jordan’s removal from the list.   

“Our gratitude and appreciation go to the US government for supporting Jordan and its economy, and to the DOL for reviewing the improvement and accomplishment achieved by the country’s garment sector,” Khayyat added.

Khayyat and Qudah agreed that additional efforts were needed to monitor labour conditions in the sector and guarantee continued improvement. 

“We know that our efforts are neither over nor complete, and we as a government are fully committed, in cooperation with other stakeholders to ensure that there is no tolerance for any form of forced labour practices in our garment sector,” Qudah said. 

US Ambassador Alice G. Wells said advances in the sector would build on the “rich and mutually beneficial economic relationship” between the US and Jordan, which she said was built on the foundation and commitments of the 2001 Free Trade Agreement. 

 “Meeting these commitments and building on the advancements in the garment industry to further protect workers from exploitation will continue to foster US-Jordanian trade for the coming years,” the statement quoted the ambassador as saying.