Dhaka, March 10, 2022 – Today, U. S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Kathryn D. Stevens joined Secretary Md. Ehsan-E-Elahi of the Ministry of Labor and Employment, Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Director Barrister Shehrin Salam Oishee, and leaders from global fashion company PVH to launch the new USAID Women Thrive in Bangladesh project to empower women who are working in ready-made garment factories.

With U.S. government support, CARE Bangladesh will implement the new five-year, $5 million project   and expand professional development opportunities for over 100,000 women working in the ready-made garment sector by equipping them with market-oriented leadership skills.  The USAID Thrive project will strengthen women’s advocacy and negotiation skills within the workplace and in their communities to advance their rights and help them overcome gender-related barriers and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

USAID and CARE will work with PVH in factories and communities in Dhaka, Chattogram, and Narayanganj districts.  The USAID Thrive project will incorporate a career enhancement training module developed by Gap Inc., a U.S.-based clothing manufacturer, and reduce gender disparities in ready-made garment factories and communities in these areas.

About USAID: The U.S. government has provided more than $8 billion in assistance to Bangladesh since its independence.  In 2021, USAID funding totaled $300 million to improve the lives of people in Bangladesh through programs that expand food security and economic opportunity, improve health and education, promote democracy and good governance, protect the environment and increase resilience to climate change, and respond to humanitarian emergencies, including the Rohingya refugee response.

About CARE: Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty.  CARE places special focus on working alongside women and girls. Equipped with the proper resources women and girls have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty.  CARE has worked in Bangladesh for more than 70 years, with a multi-sectoral development for a long-lasting impact on the situation of women’s empowerment in factories, families, and communities.  Over more than a decade, CARE Bangladesh’s Women and Girls’ Empowerment Program has implemented have worked with nearly 350,000 workers, in close collaboration with over 100 factory management teams in five industrial areas of Bangladesh to enhance leadership of women, promote and protect their rights and to facilitate collective voices of the women in labor movement. In 2020, CARE worked in over 100 countries, reaching more than 90 million people through 1,300 projects. To learn more, visit www.care.org.

Press release