OUR MISSION – to
fight poverty through
trade, practising and
promoting approaches
to trade that help poor
people in developing
countries transform
their lives
traidcraft.org.uk
DEVELOPMENTReview
2016OUR VISION – a world freed from the scandal of poverty where trade is just and people and communities can flourish
WELCOME
ASIAAFRICA
EUROPE
SOUTH AMERICA
“When I have more money
I can feed my family and
send them to school. This
is what matters to me.”
Watende, Tanzania
“When I was standing at the edge of my life, Traidcraft came into our lives like a light. It brought hope for us and I was ready to take the chance.”Mohammad, Bangladesh
Producer SupportHelping our suppliers to become self-sufficient, sustainable and profitable social enterprises that strengthen their communities.
The Catalyst ProgrammeTesting new project areas and ideas through research and field work, helping us to design and launch the best possible projects.Policy & CampaignsPromoting Traidcraft’s values of justice and fairness with decision makers in governments and businesses.
TRAIDCRAFT AROUND THE WORLDOur different areas of work across the globe
Overseas ProgrammesImproving livelihoods, building skills and raising incomes in South Asia and Africa.
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3Traidcraft Exchange, registered charity no. 1048752
Welcome to our 2016 Development Review. In my second year as interim chief executive we have had a busy and challenging time.
Across the world, we have continued to work with partners to deliver a range of livelihood projects. We’ve reached men and women in over 110,000 households providing training, business know-how and confidence - skills that we know can transform lives, empowering people to work collectively, share learning, and negotiate for better terms of trade and government support. This has had a direct impact on the lives of over 550,000 people living in those households.
In early 2016 we launched our ‘Let It Grow’ appeal to raise funds to help smallholder farmers in some of the world’s poorest countries to develop their farming skills and in doing so build businesses that help them trade their way out of poverty.
Traidcraft’s Justice Campaign mobilised supporters, campaigners and anyone concerned about the actions of UK-linked companies in developing countries to get involved in campaigning to change the law.
As ever, our work would not be possible without the support and generosity of a wide array of public bodies, partner organisations, private trusts and individuals, united by the idea that trade should be fair, that work should be rewarded and that nobody should have to live in poverty. We are so grateful for everything you do to help us fight poverty and we hope that as you read this report you see just how valuable your contributions are to farmers and artisans overseas.
Andy Biggs, Chief Executive
LEAVE NO ONE BEHINDIn 2015, the member states of the UN came together to agree goals and a plan of action to end poverty by 2030. The ‘leave no one behind’ concept is transformational, to ensure that no person – regardless of ethnicity, gender, geography, disability, race or other status – is denied universal human rights and basic economic opportunities. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals cover issues such as poverty, inequality, gender equality, health, education, and climate change. Traidcraft will focus on the goals most closely related to its mission - goals 1, 2, 5, 8 and 12. See opposite page.
No Poverty To eradicate extreme poverty for all people and reduce poverty by half is central to Traidcraft’s mission – to fight poverty through trade. We will continue to
support small scale farmers and producers as they reduce poverty in their communities around the globe.
Zero Hunger To end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and sustainable agriculture, we will promote resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity
help maintain ecosystems and provide sustainable livelihoods for poor farmers.
Gender Equality To achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls we will make it a priority to empower female farmers and artisans, ensure they get equal
access to training and markets, earn a fair wage and diversify their income.
Decent Work and Economic Growth To promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for
all. Traidcraft will support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalisation and growth of micro, small and medium sized enterprises, including through access to financial services.
Responsible Consumption and Production To ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns we will
link consumers and producers through fair trade networks, ensuring that farmers are paid fair prices and have the resources to invest in sustainable farming practices. 54
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We get better respect and are listened to more carefully when we visit tea
factories now.Indian tea grower
6
THE SMALL TEA GROWERS OF SOUTH ASIAOur EqualiTEA project is extremely wide reaching. Together with local partners (Centre for Education and Communication, India and Bikash, Bangladesh) we’re supporting small tea growers in five states in India – and even stretching across into Northern Bangladesh. This five year project has recently come to an end and even at this early stage of evaluation, we are starting to see some really significant results.
Here are some of the highlights…
Group formationA tea grower working alone on
a small plot of land has little to no bargaining power. But the EqualiTEA project has supported 51,700 tea growers to organise themselves into groups so that they can increase their influence, share knowledge and negotiate the best price for their crops.
TrainingMore than 10,000 small tea growers
have participated in training on the technical management of tea farming, marketing and the organisation of effective producer groups.
RepresentationSmall tea growers now maintain a stronger relationship
with the Tea Board of India. The project has been instrumental in getting the needs of small tea growers on the national agenda.
IncomesOur external evaluation estimates that the incomes
of EqualiTEA tea growers in India have risen by an average of 87%, due to both the project effects and a favourable national tea price. While in Bangladesh, project participants - who themselves are new to tea growing - have experienced an average income increase of more than 200%!
As a result of small tea growers working in an organised and coordinated way, tea traders have had to increase the price they pay for tea to compete in the market place. This benefits all the small tea growers in the area – not just those involved in the project.
£ ££
ScaleThe project has had a major impact on India’s tea sector as a whole –
as shown by these statistics…
The tea growers participating in the project are responsible for more than 10% of
India’s total tea production.
It’s brilliant that the people who grow so much of India’s tea are now working together, receiving better prices and actively improving their farming and business skills.
25% of the estimated small tea growers in the whole of India are covered by this project.
10%
25%
This project was funded
by the European Union.
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Income generated from beekeeping has helped me to buy school uniform and pay school fees for my children; my children and those of my fellow beekeepers no longer walk barefooted
Rufiji Beekeeper
8
This project was funded
by the UK government
and Comic Relief.
THE BEEKEEPERS OF TANZANIAWe’ve just come to the end of our BEET project (Beekeepers’ Economic Empowerment, Tanzania) - a three year initiative designed to boost incomes and increase the quality of life for rural beekeepers in Tanzania. The results are really encouraging and behind every statistic lies the stories of families fed, children educated and people working their way out of poverty.
Here are some of the key achievements...
86%INCREASE
Diversifying incomes...Beekeepers have been encouraged to develop multiple income streams to make them more resilient – investing in things like small shops, fishing, selling clothes, poultry and goat rearing.
Women in powerMore than half the leadership positions in beekeeper groups are now held by women and in the
beekeeper’s association, women fill 64% of leadership roles.
The project evaluators noted that groups led by women typically perform better than those led by men.
Making more moneyBeekeepers have increased their income by an average of 67%
Making more honeyWe helped our beekeepers increase their production by 86%.
BEETHEBEST
This has paid for… • School fees • Food• Goats and cattle• Housing
For the first time in my life, I am putting my money and creative sensibilities to weave a new design. I believe that this is a new beginning to my life as a weaver.Gopal Pal, Handloom Weaver
THE WEAVERS OF VARANASIIn Varanasi, India, the tradition of handloom weaving runs deep. For generations, these skilled artisans have traded their beautiful fabrics and earned money to support their families.
Although this is highly skilled work, the majority of the weavers still live in poverty – unable to secure an income that reflects the expert craftsmanship involved in their work.
Two years ago we started a project with local partner, the All India Artisans and Craftworkers Welfare Association, aiming to help maximise the earning potential of the Varanasi Weavers. Here are some of the key achievements…
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Training leads to trustWeavers have been provided with training on key topics such as design skills, marketing, how to
strengthen their weavers’ groups and how to access government schemes and benefits.
This has started a culture of information sharing where training and knowledge passes through the groups. As well as building skills it has helped to create an atmosphere of togetherness and trust among the weavers.
A brighter financial futureThe weavers we surveyed, who took part in multiple project activities, have reported income increases between 25-30% in just two years - great news
for families struggling to afford food, education and healthcare.
A place to belongThe weavers now have a strong group identity.
The project helped to set up the Varanasi Weavers’ Hub – a community organisation that will support the revival, protection and continuation of Varanasi weavers’ heritage. It will help weavers to create new designs and increase the sales of their beautiful products.
The plan is to make this hub partially owned by the weavers themselves – allowing them to take control of their future and become part of a strong and influential organisation.
25-30%INCOME INCREASE
This project is supported by PACS Programme.
THE FOREST FRUIT FARMERS OF SENEGALThere is good news for farmers in the Casamance region of Senegal: demand for their indigenous forest fruits is growing rapidly and represents a real opportunity to reduce poverty in the area.
The bad news, however, is that unorganised supply chains, poor communication and unsustainable forestry practices mean it’s almost impossible for these farmers to take advantage of this opportunity.
The region, although brilliantly fertile, is quite remote – separated from the capital by the formidable Gambia River and many miles. It’s also an area that is just starting to recover from decades of conflict.
Working in partnership with two local enterprises, Zena Exotic Fruits and Baobab des Saveurs, we launched our Juicing Justice project to help 2,200 farmers in the Casamance region make more of their valuable forest fruit crops - through getting them involved in a new fair trade fruit juice supply chain. We’re investing in their skills and strategies to help them move towards a future where the forest fruits supply chain rewards all its players fairly.
We are the big losers. The price is very high in the cities but we don’t receive much of that. Casamance Farmer
Trust & Communication in the Supply ChainAs well as working directly with farmers in Casamance we’re also working with local fruit processing businesses to strengthen their operations and help them access new markets.
This is how it’ll work in practice…
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This project is funded
by Comic Relief
• Create new product ranges, improve productivity and enhance product quality.
• Access high value markets and continue to invest and
support their suppliers, the small scale farmers.
• Work together to address problems & to access services
• Manage forests sustainably so farmers can continue to harvest from the forest for
years to come.
• Reduce the volume of wasted and rejected fruits.
We’re supporting businesses to...
• Work with industry experts who can support them to
improve their fruit processing and meet the needs of new
export markets.
• Achieve Fairtrade certification.
We’re supporting farmers to...
• Organise themselves into village level groups.
• Get training on agro-forestry practices.
• Develop solutions to issues with transport and storage
of harvested fruit.
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We’re also facilitating twice yearly meetings where farmers, traders and local business can come together, discuss problems and work together to find win-win solutions. This builds trust and communication within the supply chain and helps to ensure the long term sustainability of this work.
So they can...
So they can...
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Surya Pradham is more commonly known as ‘Badimaa’ which means ‘elder mother’ – a sign of the respect and affection people in her community hold for her. Having raised two sons as a single parent, Surya knows all too well the difficulties of earning a living as a woman in India…
“From the drudgery of household work to the back breaking labour in the field… women in India are not given due recognition for their efforts.”
But Surya has prospered working with Traidcraft’s partner Chetna Organic, harnessing the collective power of women in her community. After
setting up the Basumati Self Help Group, Surya and like-minded women pooled their
resources and cut out the need for the exploitative money
lenders who they used to rely on.
Over the years, Surya has been a mentor to many similar groups and now aged 65 she shows no sign of slowing down. She’s working with Traidcraft and Chetna Organic to help cotton farmers fulfil their income-earning potential. We’re proud to partner with people like Surya to ensure her skills, knowledge and passion for women’s empowerment is passed on to the next generation.
Surya’s Story
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Traidcraft and its local partners, the Forum for Integrated Development and Chetna Organic Farmers Association, are working together to improve the livelihoods and wellbeing of 4,000 small-scale cotton farming households in two districts of Odisha, India.
We’re doing this by focussing on four things…
1. Empowering women We’re ensuring women benefit from increased access to information, technology and income generating
opportunities so that they can take strides towards equality.
2. Skills building We’re helping small-scale cotton farming families to get the
agricultural knowledge and skills to sustainably produce better quality, more appropriate crops at a lower cost.
3. Resources We’re helping farmers to gain improved access to appropriate and affordable inputs and services from
public and private service providers.
4. Organisation We’re investing in building stronger groups of farmers so they can access services and markets,
share knowledge, negotiate better deals and ultimately, achieve increased income from their work.
The project’s promotion of sustainable agricultural practices can lead to huge changes in the lives of cotton farmers and their families.
Surya is a brilliant example of this…
COTTON FARMERS OF ODISHA
PRODUCER SUPPORT & INNOVATION
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SUPPORTWe provide development
support for producer groups – helping them to improve working
conditions, develop new products and access
new markets.
INNOVATIONWe pioneer new fair trade
products and set an example to others by showing how an
ethically-run business can have a huge positive impact on the
poor and marginalised.
Saidpur Enterprises provides work for about 100 women in Bangladesh. They specialise in screen-printed bags and handmade greetings cards. This year we’ve been helping them to develop their product range – to consider new items such as screen printed t-shirts but also to develop new products within their existing range. We’ve also trained the organisation in how to work with external designers and brief them clearly. They are now working with a local designer and seeking to improve their marketing.
The aim is to help them generate more sales revenue from new and improved products, to continue attracting new customers and to provide extra work for the women of Saidpur.
Small steps towards innovation in Bangladesh
Resilient coffee bushes and essential honey equipment CIPAC is a cooperative of small-holder farmers in Guatemala – specialising in honey and coffee production. In 2014, the fungal disease ‘coffee rust’ killed or badly damaged a significant proportion of their coffee plants. Traidcraft provided more than 18,000 new coffee bushes, of a stronger Arabica variety than the plants lost.
Due to the nature of their land, some CIPAC farmers still have to rely solely on honey production for their incomes. The women beekeepers of Tacana, the sole bread-winners in their families, were provided with a mobile honey extraction unit and other essential equipment under the Producer Support and Innovation Programme. This has enabled them to improve both the yield and the quality of their honey.
Safer workplaces for Palestinian artisans Trading conditions don’t get much more difficult than those faced by Holy Land Handicrafts Cooperative Society working in Palestine’s handicraft sector. They are trying to keep their traditional handicraft business alive while there is widespread poverty and a volatile atmosphere.
Traidcraft has been assisting Holy Land Handicrafts and its members in vital areas such as quality improvements, quality control, safety compliance, product design and fair trade. They are now working in much cleaner, safer and more productive work places.
The Producer Support and Innovation Programme exists to help the producers of products that Traidcraft PLC sells in ways that go beyond a simple trading relationship.
We do this through two streams…
THE FUTURE OF TRAIDCRAFT…The Catalyst Programme invests in smaller projects that have the potential to turn into much larger bodies of work. That means looking at Catalyst activities can give a good indication about what the future might hold for Traidcraft’s development programmes.
Here are just some of the activities that Catalyst money has been used for…
Rice in BangladeshWe allocated £5,500 to enable our programme team in Bangladesh to better understand the rice sector and to research how we could address challenges faced by small scale paddy farmers.
Honey in TanzaniaAlmost £6,000 of Catalyst money has been used to develop the second phase of our beekeepers programme, in Tanzania, building on the success and the lessons learned from the first phase (see page 8-9).
Horticulture in KenyaWorking in partnership with Farm Concern International, Traidcraft used Catalyst funding to run a scoping study to understand the production and marketing issues that influence productivity, competitiveness, profitability and income of horticultural farmers in Meru County, Kenya. We hope to use
this research to launch a new phase of our Kenyan horticulture work.
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THE CATALYST PROGRAMMEEvery life-changing development project starts out as just an idea. In order to make these ideas into a reality, a good deal of research and testing needs to happen.
The Catalyst Programme provides funding so that we can conduct this research and design projects that transform families, villages and even entire regions. This research also helps us unlock large grants from major donors.
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Our new project, working in Senegal’s juice sector, shows just how influential the Catalyst Programme can be…
£10,500of Catalyst funding was used to research West Africa’s fruit juice sector and to develop a project proposal.
This proposal was sent to Comic Relief where it unlocked…
£625,000
2,200 farmers & their
families (11,000 people in total) can benefit from their increased incomes
& a better quality of life.
So every pound spent on catalyst research for this project, unlocked almost £60 worth of benefit for smallholder farmers in Senegal!
£1 > £60
worth of funding to carry out the project.
So now…
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POLICY AND CAMPAIGNSSupermarkets – still a problem?Many Traidcraft supporters will remember our success in getting the government to set up a supermarkets’ watchdog – or Groceries Code Adjudicator, as it is properly known – in 2013. At the moment the Adjudicator can only investigate the relationship between a supermarket and its direct suppliers. We want this to be extended to include the whole supply chain, allowing the huge number of indirect suppliers – including many in developing countries – to have the protection of the regulator. To achieve this we have been building links with MPs and a range of like-minded organisations, and we are delighted that the Business Secretary has agreed to look at how a stronger regulator might prevent harm to vulnerable parts of the supply chain. Our focus is now to work with our allies to provide evidence that will contribute to the Government’s review, pushing for more protection for overseas farmers selling to the UK market.
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Justice still mattersTraidcraft’s Justice campaign is
highlighting that a few irresponsible
British companies are abusing or
exploiting people living in developing
countries – and getting away with it.
With nearly a third of FTSE 100
companies doing business in developing
countries this is a vital issue for the
British government to address.
There is currently a gap in
British law which means
it’s almost impossible to
prosecute large companies
when they cause serious
harm abroad. We want the
government to update the
law to close this gap. (See
Felix’s story overleaf).
JUSTICE matters
You can find out more and sign the Justice Matters petition at traidcraft.co.uk/justicecampaign
Investment agreements – not just TTIPThis year the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) has hit the headlines, with campaigners raising concerns about the damage it might cause to everything from the NHS to the environment.
Traidcraft has focused on TTIP’s less-well-known cousins, the UK’s bilateral investment treaties. These all include the same Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism which has raised so much concern in TTIP.
Because of this mechanism, governments are being sued for introducing minimum wage and worker rights legislation and environmental protection measures. The cases cost on average $8 million to defend and divert much needed resources away from development, health and education spending in developing countries.
We have been raising these concerns with UK parliamentarians and MEPs, and have also produced materials for African and European campaign groups.
The supermarkets project is funded by the European Union
This year we’ve made some good progress in highlighting the need for British companies to be held to account if they abuse or exploit people abroad. We’ve also revisited the problem of supermarkets, and raised awareness of damaging trade and investment agreements.
The results for the financial year were very pleasing considering we were following in the footsteps of our biggest appeal ever in late 2014/15. Although income from individual donations fell as expected, we still made a small surplus for the year. This was due to careful spending on our fundraising activities and other efficiencies. Several new projects started during the financial year and good progress was made on existing projects to ensure that they remain on track to deliver positive outcomes. The reserves therefore remain in a healthy position at the end of the year.
The reported number of beneficiaries reached in 2015/16 through our current projects is 558,859, exceeding the annual target of 500,000.
Unfortunately, we only secured one new project during the year as the majority of our main big donors went into a period of strategic review. This also meant that we were not able to submit as
many proposals as usual. We are continuously looking to diversify our funding sources and now have better structures in place to raise money in this country and overseas.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
Actual number558,859
Beneficiaries reached
through our projects
Annual target 500,000
723
Traidcraft Exchange financial information (£000’s)
2016 2015
Donations 1,122 1,364
Legacies 66 127
Grant Drawdowns/other income 1,790 1,882
Total Income 2,978 3,373
Fundraising & governance expenditure 494 618
Programme expenditure 2,461 2,657
Total Expenditure 2,955 3,275
Net (outgoings)/resources 23 98
Pension & exchange rate movements (12) (138)
Net (deficit)/Surplus for year 11 (40)
Unrestricted reserves 823 731
£1,122,000from donations£66,000from legacies£1,790,000 grants & others
£ ££
Thank you for your support
JUSTICE matters22
From when she was a baby, she had breathing problems. If the senta comes when she’s at school, she just starts coughing. She says ‘I feel my chest – I can’t breathe Dad.’ We tell people, but nothing gets done. There are mine police at the gate – they would not allow you inside to complain so we just complain from the outside. They just take the copper and leave. They do not care about us – I don’t know why they don’t care.Felix
Case study: FelixFelix lives in Zambia with his young family - next to one of Africa’s largest copper smelting plants, which is owned by a UK-listed company.
His daughter Bertha is seven years old and suffers from breathing problems. These are made worse by the sulphur gas that is released from the plant. This gas is so much a part of their daily lives that the locals have a word for it… ‘senta’.
Traidcraft thinks British companies which harm people aboard should be prosecuted. Join our call to update the law: traidcraft.co.uk/justicecampaign
For helping us make trade work for the world’s poorest. This year, Traidcraft and its partners supported 558,900 people – running 18 projects in 11 countries. We’ve helped poor producers and artisans to grow businesses and find markets – whatever sector they work in. We’ve been fighting poverty with... bees, textiles, forest fruits, coffee, horticulture, cotton, tea, jute & handicrafts.
Traidcraft, Kingsway, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, NE11 0NE
traidcraft.org.ukTraidcraft Exchange, registered charity no. 1048752
Picture credits: Kate Holt, GMB Akash, Rajendra Shaw, Richard Else,
Alistair Leadbetter, Wiz Baines, Shop for Change Fair Trade, Daniel Apepo, Apicoop,
Stephen Morris & Roderick Stuart, meunievd/Shutterstock.
...AND ALL THIS IS MADE POSSIBLE BY YOUR FANTASTIC SUPPORT
THANK YOU...
