News and Events

2016-07-12 17:23:15

Milestone Meeting for Fairtrade and SNV Partnership

Fairtrade International (FLO) and SNV Netherlands Development Organisation met in Kenya for their annual regional meeting to celebrate five years of our partnership and to plan ways to continue our collaboration. Fairtrade International and SNV first teamed up in 2006. Both organizations saw the need for a market-based approach to the challenge of persistent poverty, and wanted to help producers in the South reach consumers worldwide via Fairtrade. In the five years of working together, SNV and FLO staff have helped create countless new business opportunities for small producers and have expanded from five to eleven African countries, making a tangible difference in the lives of thousands of people across the continent. At the annual regional meeting held in Kenya from 24 -28 October, the eleven partnership countries reported an outreach of 100 000 households, having done business worth over US$10.5 million in 2011 and creating employment opportunities for over 28 500 people. The meeting was not only a milestone in terms of successes reported over the past years of collaboration, but also in terms of future opportunities and expected developments. FLO and SNV have agreed to continue the partnership by signing a new Memorandum of Understanding for the period 2012 - 2014. Both organizations are keen to extend the partnership’s reach to more farmers, more products and supply chains and possibly more countries. Increasing access to market intelligence for producers, demonstrating the impact of the partnership and making the most efficient use of combined resources are some key aims for the partnership going forward.