Over 130 factory owners and managers, representing three dozen of Myanmar’s garment factories, gathered together on Sunday, October 5th with representatives from several international brands & retailers for a networking and business awards dinner at Padonmar Restaurant in downtown Yangon.
The Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association (MGMA) organized the event with guidance and sponsorship from the EU funded SMART Myanmar project. This outstandingly successful event provided an opportunity for industry networking. Awards were also presented for factory cleanliness & tidiness, highlighting some of the best practices for clean, tidy and safe workplaces. Winning factories included Anita Asia, for best foreign-owned factory and UMH for best locally owned factory.
These were the first-ever factory awards to be presented by a business member organization in Myanmar. The awarded factories were chosen by a committee of judges, after an open nominations process, to the factory in each category. Each of the nominated factories was visited for a technical evaluation by MGMA staff, accompanied by industrial engineers from the SMART Myanmar project. The winning factories represent excellence in factory cleanliness & tidiness in Myanmar.
“We are proud to have a chance to support the excellent achievements of these garment factories in Myanmar. A clean & tidy workplace is essential for factories as they also improve their occupational health and safety environment, too. Many factories in Myanmar set a great example for others to follow, and the MGMA wanted to highlight, indeed, to champion & celebrate – these achievements in industry.” said Ms. Khine Khine Nwe, MGMA General Secretary.
Besides MGMA factory members and industry affiliates, a surprise appearance by the Myanmar Minister of Labour, Mr. Aye Myint, added to the energy and excitement of the event. Minister Aye Myint offered an impromptu speech on the issues and strategies factories can take to develop a healthy and productive relationship with their workforce.
MGMA is among Myanmar’s largest business member organizations, serving as a support & services organization for approximately 300 factories, designers and industry affiliate companies. Collectively, the members of MGMA employ over 200,000 individuals. In 2014, MGMA is experiencing rapid growth, as one new garment factory per week opens its doors in Myanmar. As this occurs, the SMART Myanmar team works as a close partner to ensure that MGMA develops the capacity it needs to promote not simply the growth of the industry, but also its responsible development.
