Remediation work of the country's garment factories is unlikely to be completed within the stipulated timeframe as 77 per cent of safety flaws in these factories have so far been fixed, says Accord. Some 1,655 factories are covered by Accord while 1,360 are behind schedule.

Rob Wayss, Executive Director and Acting Chief Safety Inspector of Accord stated there is wide consensus among signatories to the Accord brands, the global apparel companies in the retailers, global unions and its local affiliates that the work of Accord will not be completed by June 2018. The progress related to capacity of the social partners and to regulate safety in the industry will still be inadequate.

Looking beyond 2018, apparel brands and retailers and unions are discussing how to best ensure safety regulations and safety rights in RMG industry are adequately upheld developed. About 77 per cent of the initially identified fire, electrical and structural flaws, assessed by the Accord engineers, has been remediated and more than 400 factories have completed 90 per cent of their remediation work, Joris Oldenziel, head of public affairs at the Netherlands office of Accord, commented while presenting the progress paper. He further added saying that the Accord remediation fund will provide qualified suppliers with access to direct funding for 50 per cent of remaining remediation costs for covered factories with no current Accord business and this support is limited and will be implemented on a 'first come, first served' basis.

As Accord approaches its final year, a major focus will be to establish safety committee and safety training program as many as possible and effectively address safety complaints filed at factory safety committees or through its safety complaint mechanism.