Vietnam may be edging closer to a shorter workweek soon. As per media reports, the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour has reportedly urged the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) to devise a plan to reduce weekly working hours even as reports suggest Vietnamese workers currently average **.* hours a week, while around a quarter exceed ** hours, according to ILO data, with overtime particularly common in manufacturing, including the apparel sector, which experiences seasonal peaks and troughs.

While overtime is compensated under the Labour Code ****, prolonged working hours remain a persistent concern for both workers’ health and productivity.

China dominated Cambodia’s fabric imports with shipments valued at $*.*** billion, accounting for **.** per cent of total fabric inflows in ****. Taiwan ranked a distant second with imports worth $***.*** million, or * per cent, followed by Hong Kong at $***.*** million, representing *.** per cent, according to *fashion.com/market-intelligence/texpro-textile-and-apparel/” target=”_blank”>sourcing intelligence tool TexPro. The figures underline the limited presence of alternative Asian suppliers in Cambodia’s fabric sourcing basket.

China’s share of Cambodia’s fabric imports has risen steadily over recent years, even as overall import volumes expanded. Total fabric imports stood at $*.*** billion in ****, with China supplying **.** per cent, before rising to $*.*** billion in **** with China’s share at **.** per cent. In ****, imports increased further to $*.*** billion, with China’s share climbing to **.** per cent, culminating in near-total dominance in ****.

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Ghana are planning to set up a Circular Economy Innovation and Textile Testing Centre to tackle textile waste in the country while creating industrial development opportunities.

The initiative was discussed during a UNIDO courtesy call on Ghana’s Embassy in Rome.

UNIDO and Ghana are planning to set up a Circular Economy Innovation and Textile Testing Centre to tackle textile waste in the country while creating industrial development opportunities.
Ghana would provide laboratory testing and technical services to support textile sorting and classification, identify toxic components and enable second-life industrial applications.

The proposed centre represents a core component of an Italy-funded UNIDO project implemented with Ghana’s Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry.

It aims at strengthening circular economy solutions in the textile and second-hand clothing sector, according to a report in a Ghanaian media outlet.

The UNIDO Italian Investment and Technology Promotion Office (ITPO Italy) is implementing a project titled ‘Promoting business and technology development in Ghana’s circular textile sector’ funded by the Italian Agency for the Development Cooperation (AICS).

Ghana would provide laboratory testing and technical services to support textile sorting and classification, identify toxic components and enable second-life industrial applications, such as converting discarded textiles into inputs for furniture, insulation panels, automotive components, paper products and agricultural uses.

Nearly 15 million garment pieces arrive in Ghana every week, mostly at the Kantamanto Market in Accra, with about two-fifths ending up as waste, leading to choked drainage, and polluted lagoons and coastal zones.

Ghana last year launched the Ghana Circular Economy Centre—a 7.5-million Canadian dollar project implemented by UNIDO over a five-year period in coordination with the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, with funding from Global Affairs Canada. Ho Technical University hosts the centre.

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