The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), in association with UL, organized 15 – 25 March a webinar series on chemical management and wastewater management for six Egyptian exporting companies active in textile and garment wet processing and professionals from the Industrial Modernization Center (IMC).

The webinars are part of the EU-funded SwitchMed/MED TEST III component, implemented in association with the Ministry of Trade and Industry. In the first stage of the project, a series of training sessions for companies in the textile and garment industry was delivered to raise awareness on the importance of better chemical wastewater management in line with the ZDHC requirements. Later stages of the MED TEST III project aim to support company pilots on applying the ZDHC protocols.

“ZDHC training is an important milestone in our sustainability plan,” said Mr. Baher Bakry – Chief Compliance Officer, Sheeba International Garments Co. “through this training, we have a new perspective of chemical management and wastewater treatment. This will support us to develop our practices to create long-lasting change and meet the clients’ requirements.”

Ensuring the elimination of hazardous chemicals in textile production is critical to meeting consumer preferences for sustainably produced textile products. Failing to comply with environmental production standards could threaten companies’ future export potential and Egypt’s position in the global textile value chain.

“The Ministry of Trade and Industry just started implementing an ambitious strategy to revive the textile sector. This strategy considers the production efficiency, optimization of the resource use, and labour welfare,” explained Dr. Abir El Saadi, Minister’s Advisor for Funding and Developmental Projects. “For Egypt, the textile sector accounts for 3% of the GDP, 27% of manufacturing value-added, 12% of Egyptian exports, and 20% of the labour workforce.”

As part of the collaboration with the ZDHC Foundation, UNIDO will, until 2023 under the MED TEST III project, build capacities of local service providers and develop a roadmap to roll-out the application of the ZDHC protocol across the textile and garment industry.

In parallel to supporting the ZDHC protocol’s progress, UNIDO is developing pilot demonstrations for valorizing post-industrial textile waste in the Egyptian textile value chain. MED TEST III’s overall objective is to improve the sustainability of the textile value chain and support the private sector for future operations.

A second series of webinars is scheduled for June 2021 and will target additional textile and garments companies with wet processing.

MED TEST III Egypt in cooperation with:

For more information on MED TEST III Egypt click here.