In its final evaluation ended December 31, 2021, The Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garments and Textile (AGT) took significant steps towards a sustainable garment and textile sector. Under the agreement, companies received advice, tools and training to help them set up and implement their policy. The aim was to analyse risks, improve working conditions, prevent pollution and promote animal welfare in production countries. Achieving substantial improvements in the garment and textile supply chain will require time and effort beyond the agreement period, however.

The independent final evaluation was carried out by KIT Royal Tropical Institute. KIT concludes that the AGT has set up an important multi-stakeholder structure that facilitates a collective approach to complex issues in the supply chain. The AGT steering committee has formulated a response to KIT’s conclusions.

KIT states that it was limited in its ability to assess the impact of the AGT on the supply chain or production countries, because the focus of its analysis was in the Netherlands and on the agreement itself and the participating companies. The data for the final evaluation came from in-depth interviews with stakeholders, a survey among the participating companies and an analysis of the due diligence reports that the companies were obliged to submit annually under the terms of the agreement. No field studies were carried out in production countries.