Inditex and the International Apparel Federation (IAF) have signed a framework agreement to drive ‘significant transformation’ in the industry and supply chains, establishing concrete actions to support the adoption of more sustainable practices and technologies.
This agreement establishes the framework for projects that will be carried out to enhance working conditions, safeguard the environment, advance circularity, and encourage supply chain transparency and traceability.
According to the CEO of Inditex, Ricardo Garca Maceiras, working with the global federation of garment firms ‘is key to driving change throughout the textile industry, addressing both social and environmental challenges.’
According to the executive of the Spanish multinational, this arrangement will help ‘raise standards and competitiveness across the entire industry.’
IAF President, Cem Altan, expressed that they are “delighted to share with Inditex their vision of the importance of joining forces throughout the supply chain and driving transformative and sustainable change in the fashion industry.”
According to the agreement, IAF and Inditex have identified a number of priority areas of work, including the industrialization of producing nations, the shift to an industry that recycles waste into new raw materials and moves towards emissions neutrality, and the promotion of processes that have a lower impact on ecosystems and renewable energy.
The agreement’s primary tenet of improving working conditions includes cooperation initiatives centred on topics like social protection, diversity and inclusion, and health and safety at work.
The agreement also covers cross-cutting aspects such as creating a common framework for measuring and verifying the impacts of the textile industry, developing practices that enhance transparency, exploring the interoperability of information systems, and promoting digitalization and efficiency in global supply chains, among other matters.
