New Delhi: Quality Council of India (QCI) and the Footwear Design and Development Institute (FDDI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen the leather and footwear sector through improved quality standards, testing facilities and skill development programmes.
The QCI FDDI partnership will support capacity building and certification activities across major footwear clusters including Agra, Bahadurgarh, Ranipet, Chennai, Calicut and Kanpur.
The initiative will provide targeted programmes for workers, MSMEs, supervisors and industry professionals. Moreover, it will improve quality management practices, expand access to testing facilities and help laboratories achieve accreditation.
QCI FDDI partnership to create worker certification framework
Under the agreement, QCI will offer technical guidance on accreditation standards and quality systems. It will also support awareness programmes, research studies and monitoring mechanisms for the sector.
Meanwhile, FDDI will conduct cluster-based training programmes based on local industry requirements. It will map testing laboratories, identify infrastructure gaps and establish sample collection centres in underserved regions.
The collaboration will also develop a multi-level assessment and personal certification system. Additionally, it will include Recognition of Prior Learning pathways for experienced workers without formal qualifications.
The MoU was signed by QCI Secretary General Chakravarthy T. Kannan and FDDI Managing Director Vivek Sharma on behalf of their organisations.
The partnership aims to build globally competitive manufacturing ecosystems and strengthen the role of MSMEs and workers in India’s leather and footwear industry.
