A Cambodian garment worker takes part in the I am Precious campaign in July.

Promoting the self value of garment workers by increasing awareness of their work, abilities and skills is the message behind the I am Precious campaign, launched in July by the International Labour Organization.

 

A central part of the campaign is a fashion design competition, Made in Cambodia, where garment workers are invited to submit their own fashion designs. The winning designs will be created and featured in a fashion show in November. 

The campaign also aims to provide information about career opportunities in the fashion industry, raise awareness about the sector’s supply chain, and provide a forum for discussion about the industry’s success and challenges ahead. The nation-wide campaign, the second since 2007, is also a mechanism to build confidence in the Cambodian garment industry in the wake of the current economic crisis.
 
Creating attractive designs for the country to export garments is one means of attracting international buyers and promoting the industry, said campaign organizer Catherine Vaillancourt-Laflamme, from ILO’s Better Factories Cambodia at the launch.

She said the campaign aimed to show garment workers in Cambodia in a different light: “They are creative, have stunning ideas, have many skills and abilities that go far beyond what too often is the image we have of them.” 

Mr. Kaing Monika of Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia, agreed: “Employment opportunity in the garment industry is not limited to cutting and sewing, as most would imagine.”

“This is an industry with a very complex supply chain where many challenging positions are available, and we are confident that Cambodian workers can do it to propel this industry to the next level,” he said.   

To boost the campaign, ILO’s Better Factories Cambodia teamed up with GMAC, Garment Industry Productivity Centre (GIPC), Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Commerce, and UNDP.

UNDP, through its TRADE Project with the Ministry of Commerce, is supporting the Cambodian government’s sector-wide approach (SWAp) strategy to expand and diversify the country’s export base.  The garment sector is one of the 19 priority sectors that have been identified by the government and its development partners for expansion and diversification. The Cambodian garment industry emerged in 1994 with seven factories and has since grown to become a key supplier of clothing products to the United States. In 2008, the industry’s export was worth some US$3 billion, accounting for over 70 percent of the country’s total export value.

The industry is now experiencing a rough time due to the global economic challenges. But the Cambodian government is determined to put in place measures that can ensure long term development of this key export sector, which employs directly some 300,000 workers, mostly women from the countryside, and more than 1.5 million people are thought to have indirectly benefitted from their remittances.

One way to contribute to expansion and diversification is to move from CMT (Cut, Make and Trim) and up the value chain, where margins for profit are much greater. Yet, design skills need to be developed to help the country’s main export sector move to producing garments based on its own design. 

UNDP’s aim is not to promote trade in itself, but to identify trade as a means to contribute to poverty reduction and lay the groundwork for people to lead more productive and healthy lives. 

The winner of the first I Am Precious  campaign of 2007, Sem Sokny, a garment factory worker, explained how she and colleagues were able to take advantage of the last competition to showcase their fashion talent in the runway show.

 “The competition gave me the opportunity to put my sewing skills into a more creative manner,” said Sem Sokny.  “The dress I’ve designed made me realize that I can do more than just a seamstress.  I am inspired to be a designer and open a small shop one day.”

This year’s T-shirt and dress design competition is open to all workers, including those laid off as a result of the economic crisis. Some 100,000 entry forms were being distributed to workers through the union groups and the I Am Precious national magazine. Top three winners of the competition will be announced in November.