FROM 50 TO 5,000 : DTRT PROVIDES SUSTAINABLE JOBS TO WOMEN & ADVANCES GHANA-US APPAREL TRADE

From left to right: REGO Director, USAID/West Africa Mission Director, Salma and Wasanta – Directors of DTRT.

Tema, Ghana, February 8, 2024: West Africa is increasingly becoming the desired destination for apparel buyers from the U.S. and Europe because of its proximity to the consumer market and potential to help reduce carbon emissions, and the potential to diversify supply chains. This is an exciting position for the region’s burgeoning apparel sector, which is better-placed to increasingly play a bigger role in a global market that exceeds $2 trillion and helps diversify products exported from the region. West Africa also has an opportunity to grow its apparel sector without the labor problems that have plagued other regions of the world.

Dignity Do The Right Thing (DTRT) is a Ghanaian – American joint venture, established in 2014. In 2019, USAID provided grant support to train prospective staff–mostly women–at its Accra factory. The women are employed across a variety of functions ranging from garment handling and apparel production lines to traditionally male-dominated roles like mechanics. Taking advantage of AGOA export opportunities in the sports-apparel subsector, the company has been able to obtain contracts with U.S. buyers such as SanMar, The Children’s Place, and Walmart. DTRT exports to the US apparel market and has grown from 50 staff at its founding to around 5,000 today. Of the staff, 71% are women and a majority have received on the job training. The target is to reach 10,000 employees within the next five years. USAID continues to support DTRT to upscale and expand its factory, including the Tema facilities.

DTRT seeks to create a dignified work environment for its staff and to engage, positively, with the broader society. Among other staff welfare practices, the company is providing transportation and free lunch to employees. DTRT also seeks to be a trailblazer in diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. Already with approximately 40 deaf and/or hard of hearing employees, the firm plans to further expand employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities, especially the deaf community. DTRT is also supporting the broader Ghanaian community, including through sports.

On Thursday, February 8, 2024, Jo Lesser-Oltheten, the USAID/West Africa Mission Director, visited DTRT facilities at the Free Zones Enclave in Tema to witness the multiplier effect of USAID’s private sector co-investment grant support.  USAID’s support to DTRT helps advance the U.S. Government’s Prosper Africa goals of expanding bilateral trade and investment with the U.S., as well as to meet USAID West Africa’s objectives of creating jobs. While interacting with DTRT’s leadership, the Mission Director reiterated USAID’s appreciation for the long-standing relationships between USAID and DTRT, and for the impact the firm has had on the lives of Ghanaians. She also expressed appreciation for the firm’s continued hospitality toward USG visitors. Read more about DTRT here.