Meeting of the members of the Textile Cluster on the topic "STATUS, EU LEGISLATION AND PROGRAMS IN THE TEXTILE SECTOR
On 28.09.2024 in Skopje, a meeting was held with members of the Textile Cluster where current issues and situations in the textile sector in the country and in the markets where textile companies in Macedonia export, as well as current European legislation were discussed: the challenges of sustainable production, supply chain law, CSR and social, environmental standards, circular economy.
At the meeting, the present companies presented the situation in their company / the region where they come from in order to get a picture of the situation in the sector, they also discussed the relationship with their buyers and the placement of orders. The long-present and continuous problem of companies, the lack of manpower, as well as ways to improve it, and among other things, ways to increase productivity, were discussed. Focus was given to the German market, where Macedonian companies export the most, what is the state of that market and the implications of the new EU and German legislation to which our export-oriented industry will have to adapt. On the topic of the German market as one of the main partners for clothing production in Macedonia, the guest at the meeting was Mr. Wolfgang Weis consultant - Weis Consulting association from Germany, an association that has more than 40 years of experience in management consulting for the textile industry, from production planning, production to final product, as well as organization of trainings and marketing on topics useful and requested by textile companies by a professional team of 25 consultants and experienced specialists. Mr. Weis is a consultant who has worked for many years on the Macedonia-Germany relationship, he has done a process of reorganization of production in many Macedonian textile companies, with the aim of increasing productivity, saving time, improving production capacities. Those present at the meeting had the opportunity to hear about the situation in Germany in the textile sector, as well as about the activities that Weis Consulting association works on, the wide range of training offered, areas of marketing, design, collection creation, organization and rationalization of production was presented. , trainings for the work of the staff, etc.
Also a guest at the meeting was Mrs. Bianca Seidel, a long-time consultant at the Weis Consulting association, who presented the German legislation that is important for Macedonian companies as the most export-oriented to that market, the laws for the supply chain in Germany as well as the EU. She emphasized the importance of the clothing and textile industry as a key industry for global transformation. He elaborated the so-called EU Green Deal as well as the EU Textile Strategy. Mrs. Bianca also spoke about the circular economy as a trend that is becoming more and more significant and will be a target for implementation more and more, she also spoke about the Screening process and gave her recommendations regarding the European Union in favor of the textile industry in Macedonia.
It was concluded that the customers/buyers for whom Macedonian textile companies currently work are increasingly demanding compliance with sustainable production requirements, supply chain laws and various social and environmental standards, such as the Green Button, BSCI and others, as well as textile management. waste. Compliance with these requirements will affect maintaining international competitiveness and therefore it is extremely important to adapt to these changes in time. Adapting to these requirements on the other hand brings increased costs that companies are not always able to provide. On this topic, the guests of the meeting were representatives from the Ministry of Economy, Mrs. Jasmina Majstorova and Mr. Aleksandar Janceski, who presented the activities of the Ministry in this part and the talks that it leads at the highest level in the EU. In this direction, they presented the appropriate support programs that the state creates and offers through the Ministry of Economy, which are made available to the business sector, which can be used by applying for them. One of the programs is the social responsibility support program, which was once developed at the request of the Textile Cluster, and with its support, areas such as covering part of the costs of social audits according to SMETA-SEDEX, AMFORI-BSCI and SA8000 were defined. This program of the Ministry of Economy contributes to the motivation of companies to prove their socially responsible practices, but also to reduce costs. The textile cluster is constantly upgrading in this part, and continues to offer its members the service of mediation in connecting with audit companies, support when applying for funds from the Ministry, as well as preparation for social audit in order to better prepare companies for an audit. The representatives of the Ministry emphasized that they are open for cooperation and for all questions about the programs they offer in communication with the Textile Cluster in order to better understand the programs and their use.
At the meeting, the present companies presented the situation in their company / the region where they come from in order to get a picture of the situation in the sector, they also discussed the relationship with their buyers and the placement of orders. The long-present and continuous problem of companies, the lack of manpower, as well as ways to improve it, and among other things, ways to increase productivity, were discussed. Focus was given to the German market, where Macedonian companies export the most, what is the state of that market and the implications of the new EU and German legislation to which our export-oriented industry will have to adapt. On the topic of the German market as one of the main partners for clothing production in Macedonia, the guest at the meeting was Mr. Wolfgang Weis consultant - Weis Consulting association from Germany, an association that has more than 40 years of experience in management consulting for the textile industry, from production planning, production to final product, as well as organization of trainings and marketing on topics useful and requested by textile companies by a professional team of 25 consultants and experienced specialists. Mr. Weis is a consultant who has worked for many years on the Macedonia-Germany relationship, he has done a process of reorganization of production in many Macedonian textile companies, with the aim of increasing productivity, saving time, improving production capacities. Those present at the meeting had the opportunity to hear about the situation in Germany in the textile sector, as well as about the activities that Weis Consulting association works on, the wide range of training offered, areas of marketing, design, collection creation, organization and rationalization of production was presented. , trainings for the work of the staff, etc.
Also a guest at the meeting was Mrs. Bianca Seidel, a long-time consultant at the Weis Consulting association, who presented the German legislation that is important for Macedonian companies as the most export-oriented to that market, the laws for the supply chain in Germany as well as the EU. She emphasized the importance of the clothing and textile industry as a key industry for global transformation. He elaborated the so-called EU Green Deal as well as the EU Textile Strategy. Mrs. Bianca also spoke about the circular economy as a trend that is becoming more and more significant and will be a target for implementation more and more, she also spoke about the Screening process and gave her recommendations regarding the European Union in favor of the textile industry in Macedonia.
It was concluded that the customers/buyers for whom Macedonian textile companies currently work are increasingly demanding compliance with sustainable production requirements, supply chain laws and various social and environmental standards, such as the Green Button, BSCI and others, as well as textile management. waste. Compliance with these requirements will affect maintaining international competitiveness and therefore it is extremely important to adapt to these changes in time. Adapting to these requirements on the other hand brings increased costs that companies are not always able to provide. On this topic, the guests of the meeting were representatives from the Ministry of Economy, Mrs. Jasmina Majstorova and Mr. Aleksandar Janceski, who presented the activities of the Ministry in this part and the talks that it leads at the highest level in the EU. In this direction, they presented the appropriate support programs that the state creates and offers through the Ministry of Economy, which are made available to the business sector, which can be used by applying for them. One of the programs is the social responsibility support program, which was once developed at the request of the Textile Cluster, and with its support, areas such as covering part of the costs of social audits according to SMETA-SEDEX, AMFORI-BSCI and SA8000 were defined. This program of the Ministry of Economy contributes to the motivation of companies to prove their socially responsible practices, but also to reduce costs. The textile cluster is constantly upgrading in this part, and continues to offer its members the service of mediation in connecting with audit companies, support when applying for funds from the Ministry, as well as preparation for social audit in order to better prepare companies for an audit. The representatives of the Ministry emphasized that they are open for cooperation and for all questions about the programs they offer in communication with the Textile Cluster in order to better understand the programs and their use.