Fashion industry urges collaborative shift towards impact-driven due diligence at OECD Forum

Manufacturers and sector specialists advocate for a more collaborative, impact-focused approach to due diligence in the apparel industry amid evolving regulations, emphasising transparency, standards harmonisation, and worker participation at the OECD Forum in Paris.

Fashion manufacturers urged greater leadership and collaboration in shaping due diligence approaches at a partner-led session held during the OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector i...

Co-hosted by Fashion Producer Collective, Shahi Exports and MAS Holdings, the side event brought together manufacturer representatives and sector specialists to argue that suppliers should be recognised as active problem-solvers rather than merely subjects of compliance checks. The session, moderated by Kim van der Weerd, Co‑Founder and CEO of Fashion Producer Collective, featured panellists including Anett Sóti of Fashion Producer Collective, Chitra Prasad, Head of Social Sustainability at Shahi Exports, and Dhanujie Jayapala, General Manager of Environmental Sustainability at MAS Holdings. According to Apparel Views, the discussion examined how manufacturers can help design trust-based, system-level due diligence across global apparel chains.

Speakers warned that a transitionary regulatory environment is creating uncertainty for suppliers. They noted that emerging laws such as the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive are already influencing investment choices, partnership models and accountability expectations, and that suppliers face practical difficulties interpreting overlapping voluntary guidance and legal requirements. The OECD’s event materials highlight the forum’s broader aim of aligning governments, business, trade unions and civil society around expectations for responsible supply chains.

A central theme was the need to move due diligence from a reporting-centred exercise to one focused on measurable impact at factory level. Panellists and participants called for harmonisation of standards to reduce duplicated audits, greater recognition of credible manufacturer systems, and more investment in scalable grievance mechanisms as a direct way to protect worker wellbeing. The session emphasised the role of responsible transparency, traceability and digitised data to anticipate risks and respond more effectively to workers’ needs.

Audience contributions underlined practical reforms that would help rebalance buyer–supplier relationships: lowering the administrative burden of audits, expanding worker participation in grievance and remediation processes, and fostering longer-term commercial arrangements that support shared accountability and innovation. Organisers said these proposals point to a next phase of due diligence built on collaboration across brands, suppliers and worker representatives.

The partner organisations framed the event as part of their wider commitment to system-level solutions for sustainability in apparel production. The OECD’s forum programme for 11–12 February 2026 brought together governments, businesses, trade unions, civil society, international organisations and academics to address these themes, including supply‑chain shocks, e-commerce and climate adaptation, and to advance implementation of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector. Industry participants at the session stressed that progress will depend on policy clarity, mutual recognition of effective practices and sustained investment in factory-level capacity.

Source: Noah Wire Services