Comic Relief Funds Fairtrade In Africa

The Fairtrade Foundation is being awarded a grant from Comic Relief of £5m over five years for the development of Fairtrade in Africa to support local people in their efforts to achieve sustainable development in their communities. The funding aims to contribute to the reduction of poverty in Africa by supporting more farmers and workers to come into Fairtrade, so improving their social and economic position. Existing Fairtrade producers will also benefit by being able to sell greater volumes into international Fairtrade markets.

“We salute Comic Relief for their vision in making this hugely significant investment in Fairtrade,” says Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation. “This is the biggest financial support the Fairtrade movement has received to date, and gives a real chance to producers in Africa. It will trigger meaningful opportunities for African producers to lift themselves out of poverty and create sustainable livelihood for themselves, their families and their communities. “Through access to the financial and development benefits of Fairtrade – including the Fairtrade minimum price, additional premium, pre-financing facilities and long-term business relations with traders – producers have a chance, through their work, to build towards a better future.”

There are currently 170 Fairtrade certified organisations in Africa producing coffee, cotton, cocoa, tea, fresh fruit and many other Fairtrade labelled products. These organisations represent tens of thousands of small farmers and plantation workers. It is expected that, through this additional investment in Fairtrade in existing product categories and bringing new products to market, this total could reach some 400 Fairtrade certified producer organisations and hence thousands more direct and indirect beneficiaries. Many of the improvements made through the Fairtrade premium are used for infrastructure like road-building and repairs, wells, healthcare centres, community halls or classrooms. This means not only the producers and their families benefit but neighbouring communities as well.

On top of the tangible benefits, the Fairtrade system has other spin-offs. In Bolivia, the fact that a quarter of all coffee producers are Fairtrade certified has had a positive influence on the local market, leading to higher prices that are also enjoyed by non-certified producers. The Fairtrade Foundation expects that, as markets increase in African countries, other opportunities will also open up.

“Fairtrade is also about empowerment,” continues Harriet Lamb. “African producers have articulated their desire to contribute more effectively to Fairtrade policy and standards development and to strengthen their voice in international trade discussions.”

To this end, the Comic Relief funds will also be invested in building the producer network, the African Fairtrade Network (AFN). Formed two years ago, it enables the perspective of the member producers and workers to feed into the governance system of Fairtrade Labelling and international trade debates. Funds will help provide substantial training and capacity building for producers about Fairtrade implementation procedures, quality management, technical assistance, and market access facilitated by local liaison officers and regional coordinators.

“The Comic Relief grant is going to strengthen the AFN to set up management structures to take on new roles, decentralized from the Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International coordinating office in Bonn, Germany,” says Silver Kasoro-Atwoki, AFN Board member and chair of the Mabale Growers Tea Factory in Uganda. “This is building capacity for producer business development in Africa and is exactly the direction Fairtrade needs to go in!”

The Fairtrade Foundation hopes the Comic Relief support for Fairtrade will act as a driver for other funders to get involved by supporting wider investment plans to develop Fairtrade – across Latin America and Asia, as well as Africa. In June a report by the House of Commons International Development Committee recommended that the Department for International Development adopt a much more proactive and strategic approach to Fairtrade. The Foundation is hoping this will result in the government taking a lead nationally and internationally in securing funds for Fairtrade.

“This is a significant grant for Comic Relief and strengthens our long-term support with the Fairtrade movement,” says Judith McNeill, Comic Relief Grants Director. “The £5m over 5 years will allow the Fairtrade Foundation to develop stronger links between people in the UK buying Fairtrade and producers in Africa. With their support, thousands of African farmers will be able to develop long-term routes out of poverty rather than relying on aid.”

Notes to Editors
1. The Fairtrade Foundation is an independent certification body that certifies the use of the FAIRTRADE Mark on products which meet international Fairtrade standards. Fairtrade standards are set by Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO), the umbrella organisation that unites national Fairtrade initiatives across Europe, Japan, USA, Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand.

2. This independent consumer label appears on products as a guarantee that disadvantaged producers are getting a better deal. Today, more than five million people - farmers, workers and their families - across 58 developing countries benefit from the international Fairtrade system.

3. The Africa Fairtrade Network (AFN) was set up in 2004 with the constitution formally approved in 2005. In 2005 and 2006, two regional networks of the AFN were formalised: East Africa Fairtrade Network and West Africa Fairtrade Network. The South African Fairtrade Network is still in the development process and a network for North Africa is expected to develop once there are more Fairtrade certified producer organisations in that region. The AFN is governed by a board which is constituted of two representatives per regional network, along with the AFN chairman and the official AFN delegate to the FLO Board, the highest decision-making body in the Fairtrade Labelling system. All African Fairtrade certified producer organisations have automatic membership of the AFN. They have the right to vote at the AFN General Assembly of all members, held every two years.

For further information, phone 020 7440 7686/7695 or mobile 07770 957 451 or email eileen.maybin@fairtrade.org.uk or martine.julseth@fairtrade.org.uk.

The Fairtrade Foundation,
Room 204, 16 Baldwin’s Gardens,
London EC1N 7RJ.

Tel: 020 7405 5942
Fax: 020 7405 5943
Web: www.fairtrade.org.uk