Global Compact International Yearbook Ausgabe 2010

Best Practice
Partnership
fering an interest-free loan to cover
the investment costs, with the start-up
capital being repaid over a period of 10
to 15 years from the profits of the Otto
Grameen Textile Company. As soon as
the social business is self-financing, the
profits generated – overseen by the
Grameen Otto Trust – will be used
for the long-term improvement of the
living conditions of the region’s poorest
people.
The Otto Grameen Textile Company offers its workers,
and their families, a sustainable future.
Ecologically optimized
factory building
It is anticipated that the Otto Grameen
Textile Company will commence operations
in 2011 and produce around
250,000 to 300,000 articles per month for
export. The textiles will be produced in
an ecologically optimized, CO2-efficient
factory building equipped with the latest
insulation, energy-saving lighting, and
optimized ventilation systems.
Exemplary social benefits
The Otto Grameen Textile Company offers
the region’s poor the opportunity
to free themselves from poverty. “Poor
people are not asking for charity, as
charity is not a solution for poverty. They
want to work to earn their livelihood.
Our company will provide an example
of how to tackle poverty in the world,”
explains Professor Yunus. Fair wages,
good working conditions, and social
benefits are the cornerstones of the social
program for the 500 to 700 workers. T-
shirts, sweatshirts, and underwear will
then be cut, sewn, pressed, and packed
at the Otto Grameen Textile Company.
Workers will be offered further education
and training opportunities as well
as healthcare, and will receive a healthy
lunch. During working hours, their
children will be looked after in a workplace
daycare center offering pre-school
classes. In a second stage, assistance
will also be provided to neighboring
communities in the form of educational
offers, healthcare, and the setting up of
sanitary facilities. The focus of the efforts
will primarily be on fostering individual,
community, and social progress by offering
extensive educational offers.
Emulation welcomed
Social Business
The purpose of a social business is not to maximize profits; rather, the highest
priority is on pursuing social and often ecological aims. There are two types
of social business: the so-called Type I business gives the poor access to
affordable food, products, healthcare, and education. The company does not
have to generate a profit – it just has to cover its own costs. In contrast, a
Type II social business is profit-oriented. However, the profit is not paid out
in the form of return on capital, but is used for the benefit of workers in the
form of a social return on investment. The objective here is to make a lasting
improvement to the local population’s living conditions. Grameen Otto is the
world’s first Type II social business.
“Opportunities for the workers to gain
qualifications, the introduction of high
environmental protection, and work
safety standards are an example of how
the UN Global Compact Principles are being
implemented in practical terms. The
Otto Grameen Textile Company should
serve as a model for further textile factories
in Bangladesh, and prompt the entire
industry to take similar action,” says Dr.
Johannes Merck, vice president Corporate
Responsibility of the Otto Group, summarizing
the venture’s goals. The plan
is to extend the factory in Dhaka in the
second phase of the project, with possible
long-term expansion of the concept
within Bangladesh and to additional
countries.
Global Compact International Yearbook 2010 153