Trade for Development Centre – BTC (Belgian Development Agency)
1
STANDARDS
Up until the nineties of the last century, practically only product quality standards were prevelant in the sports balls industry. This changed during the run-up to the 1996 European Football Championships, when media and NGOs (non-governmental organisations) were reporting about child labour in the football industry in Pakistan. As a result of that, on 14 February 1997 an agreement called the Atlanta Agreement was signed between the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and industry (SCCI) in Pakistan, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Unicef, as well as a few NGOs, namely Save the Children (the UK), Pakistan Bail-ul-Mal and Bunyad Literacy Community Council. The agreement focused on two areas: 1. Child labour prevention and monitoring in Sialkot by the ILO’s International Programme for the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) and 2. Social protection implemented by UNICEF and Save the Children (UK) along with the Pakistani Government and NGOs with a focus on training and education. Read the complete Atlanta Agreement at http://www.imacpak.org/atlanta.htm. The Atlanta Agreement forms a starting point for many industry initiatives which have been developed since. Standards and sustainability initiatives relevant for the sports balls industry can be divided into four types: 1. Local initiatives in producing countries. 2. Sector initiatives. 3. General sustainability standards. 4. Buyer codes of conduct. This chapter provides an overview for producers, importers and associations of the relevant standards within the four different types of initiatives. It will give producers of sports balls an indication of the importance of these standards and sustainability initiatives and how they can comply with them. It will also give importers an indication of which alternatives to choose from. The chapter is concluded with observations about current labour right violations in the industry.
› 1.1 LOCAL INITIATIVES IN PRODUCING COUNTRIES In the sports balls industry, child labour is the issue that has drawn the most attention and initiatives in the sports balls industry are targeted towards this in particular. In two of the main producing countries, India and Pakistan, national initiatives have been set up to regulate child labour. In the other main producing countries, China, Thailand and Vietnam, no such initiatives have been set up so far. It is very important for Pakistani or Indian producers to be a member of the monitoring organisations IMAC and SGFI respectively, as very few international companies are interested in doing business with non-members in these countries. PAKISTAN
In Pakistan lies the cradle for all sustainability initiatives in the industry. It all started with the Atlanta Agreement in 1997.
15