2011 Annual Report Solidaridad Network

Certified gold jewellery now available

New farmer support programmes

2011 Annual Report

2 SolidaridadNetwork 2011AnnualReport

Contents

ForewordAyearofunparalleleddynamism 5

Vision and strategy 7SolidaridadinbriefProductionwithrespectforpeopleandplanet 8Newin2011:farmersupportprogrammesAcceleratingsmart,sustainableland-usesolutions 10Planning,monitoringandevaluationNewmulti-annualstrategicplan2011-2015 12

Product groups 15Solidaridad:TransitionmanagerTransformingmarketstocreateasustainableeconomy 16CoffeeInsightandanalysisbringfarmersrealgains 18TeaCreatingsustainabilitystandardsacrossAsia 20CocoaBecomingstrongerinthesustainablecocoamarket 22FruitandvegetablesGradualprogressinfruitandvegetablesector 24CottonProgrammegotboostfrombignameretailers 26TextilesFocusshiftsfromcompliancetocapacity-building 28GoldCertifiedgoldjewellerynowavailable 30SoyFirstRTRScertificatessoldin2011 32PalmoilSupportsmallholdersgetsofftoapromisingstart 34SugarcaneAlllightsgreenforsuccessin2012 36

Bio-basedeconomy,Aquaculture,LivestockNewprogrammesinfastgrowingsectors 38

Regional development 41SolidaridadNetworkAninternationalnetworkorganization 42SouthAmericaSolidaridadwellpositionedinsustainablesolutions 44AndesMorethanhalfofexportsnowinproducers’hands 46CentralAmericaSolidaridadmakesprogressagainsthugeodds 48WestAfricaSolidaridadWestAfricacomesofage 50SouthernAfricaImprovingmarketaccessinSouthernAfrica 52EastandCentralAfricaCreatingvisibilityandattractingmorepartners 54SouthandSouthEastAsiaIndonesianteastandardlaunched 56ChinaStakeholderapproachtopromotesustainability 58TheNetherlandsGlobalplayerinsector-wideinnovation 60

Supervision and finance 63NewgovernanceandmanagementstructuresBuildinganinnovativelearningorganization 64OrganizationOrganizationdevelopmentinprogress 66FinancialreportInternationalfundraising 67

Textandediting:DavidAlexanderandMichaelGould–finalediting:MichaelGould–design:DaanvanBeek–print:Pascal,Utrecht,Netherlands–photographsSolidaridad,unlessotherwiseindicated–coverphotograph:Solidaridad

TheEnglish,DutchandSpanisheditionsareavailableonlineinPDFformatfromwww.solidaridadnetwork.organdwww.solidaridad.nlSolidaridadNetworkisregisteredasafoundationattheChamberofCommerceinUtrecht,number51756811Thisannualreportcanbeordered(freeofcharge)attheSolidaridadNetworksecretariatinUtrecht,theNetherlands.

Internationalsecretariat’tGoylaan153525AAUtrecht,theNetherlandstel:+31(0)302759450fax:+31(0)302720194e-mail:[email protected]

SolidaridadNetwork 2011AnnualReport 3

Vision and strategy

Solidaridad:transitionmanagerThe market can be transformed in the direction of sustainable development using competition. First movers initiate change and, as soon as the potential is evident, they are followed by early adopters. The later majority come on board to counter increasing competitive disadvantage.

16

TeaCreatingsustainabilitystandards

Tea picking and processing provide livelihoods for over 15 million people. Rising production costs coupled with low global tea prices often results in poor working conditions and low wages for labourers. Tea which is grown in some of the most ecologically sensitive areas in the world often affects the lives of indigenous peoples.

20

SouthAmerica‘Smartfarming’remainsachallengeSouth American farmers now feed not only consumers on the continent (275 million), but also 1 billion others. How can they avoid further destruction of the rainforest and expand in a smart sustainable way?

44

FarmersupportprogrammesRound tables develop tools for economically validating environmental and social values in regions where food is produced around the world. The Dutch Government invited Solidaridad to upscale them into full farmer support initiatives.

10

Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil

Photo:LeonardoMelgarejo

Photo:SiddharthTripathy

Photo:RogervanZaal


Vision and strategy

Foreword

A year of unparalleled dynamism

Thepastyearwasaremarkableone.Itwasayearthatbeganwithuncertaintyaboutfinancingouroperations.AftertwelveyearsinwhichaquarterofSolidaridad’sbudgetwasfinancedbyacontributionfromtheDutchMinistryofForeignAffairs,itseemedforawhilethatwewouldlosethissupportinfutureyears.However,duringthecourseof2011theoppositeprovedtobethecase.SoonafterthenewGovernmenttookofficewereceivedaconsiderablemulti-yeargrantforourfarmersupport,whichguaranteedthecontinuityofalargenumberofourprogrammes.AddtothatthejointeffortsbythenineregionalcentresoftheSolidaridadNetwork,anditlookslikelythatSolidaridad’sbudgetfor2012willexceed25millioneuros.

ThisbroadsupportforSolidaridad’sworkisundoubtedlythankstoourphilosophy.Thewidespreadrecognitionthatsustainableeconomicdevelopmentformsthebasisforcombatingpovertyandthefactthatpublic-privatecooperationplaysakeyroleinachievingthis,supportsSolidaridad’sapproachtodevelopingitsprogrammes.What’smore,Solidaridadhasthepracticalmechanismsinplacetohelpbringaboutthetransitiontoasustainableeconomy.Moreover,theprinciplesunderlyingSolidaridad’sapproachareclear.Theyareaboutoptimizinglanduse,higherproductiontomeetgrowingdemand,producingmorewithlesssocialandecologicalimpactsanddevelopmentthatisbothsociallyinclusiveandsustainable.Betteruseoflandhelpstopreventexpansionofagricultureintovulnerableareasofhighnatureconservationvalue.Forestsmustbeprotectedtostabilizetheglobalclimate.

ThesedevelopmentshavemadeSolidaridadaglobalplayer.Wemakeaprominentcontributiontoroundtablesforagriculturalcommoditieslikesoy,sugar,palmoil,meatandcotton,andencouragecooperationbetweencertificationprogrammesforcoffee,tea,fruitandcocoa.Ourworkingrelationswithcompaniesintheclothingindustryareexpandingandbecomeincreasinglyeffective.Andafterseveralyearsofpreparation,Solidaridadwillsoonbelaunchingthefirstfair-tradesystemforresponsiblegold.Inshort,thepastyearwasoneofunparalleledvigourandactivity,withagrowingnumberofnewpartnerships–intheNetherlandswiththeSustainableTradeInitiative(IDH)andinternationallywithWWF,Care,GIZandIFC.

ThisAnnualReportmarksahistoricmoment.ItisthefirstannualreportbytheSolidaridadNetwork,theinternationalorganizationwhichincorporatestheDutchorganization.Developmentcooperationtakesplacebetweenequalpartnerswhotogethermakepolicyandbearresponsibilityforachievingconcreteresults.Thatishowitshouldbe,anditishowitis.

NicoRoozenExecutivedirector

Photo:Solidaridad,PieterSijbrandij BrazilianfamilyfarmerduringinspectionforRTRScertification.


Vision and strategy

Vision and strategy

Productionwithrespectforpeopleandplanet

Acceleratingsmart,sustainableland-usesolutions

Newmulti-annualstrategicplan2011-2015

Photo:H.P.A

ltingvonGeusau KenyancoffeefarmersfromtheRungetofarmerscooperativecanwithdrawfundstheyearnedwiththeirproduce.


Solidaridadinbrief

Production with respect for people and planet

Where we standThe global population is rising by 79million people year onyearandglobalconsumptionisgrowingexponentially,puttingincreasingpressureonnaturalresources,energy,freshwater,forestsandbiodiversity.Andyetthree-quartersofthepeoplein Asia and Africa still live on less than $2 a day. Moreover,poverty is a serious impediment to making the necessaryinvestments in sustainable production. Solidaridad believeswecanfeed9billionpeoplein2050ifwemakeaglobaltransi-tiontosmartsustainablelanduse. Solidaridad’smissionistomanagethistransitionandbringabout a fair balance between growth and distribution. Small-scale farmers and miners can become sustainable entre-preneurs and raise yields by two to five times while securingsteady incomes and building long-term livelihoods. By ‘doingmore with less’, the poor themselves become the agents ofdevelopment. Through good governance, corporate socialresponsibility and an active civil society, it’s possible todevelop a sustainable economy that can feed the world andliftpeopleoutofpoverty.

Our goalsOurgoalsareproductionwithrespectforpeopleandplanet,and reliable trade relations that give producers a fair deal.These can be achieved when companies are committed tomeetingtheirsocialresponsibilitiesandconsumersknowthestory behind the product, allowing them to choose fair andgreenproducts.

Developing sustainable value chainsOur aim is to change the international economy to make itworkforthepoorbyinvolvingallstakeholders,fromfarmersto consumers, in sustainable production and consumption.Solidaridad invests in alliances between producers, compa-nies,consumers,civilsocietyorganizationsandgovernmentsin order to build sustainable value chains for products. Insustainablevaluechains,pricesreflectnotonlythesocialandecological costs of production, but also the economic bene-fitsofefficiencygainsfromsustainableproductionmethods.The living conditions of producers are improved and theecological and climate impacts of production are minimized.Within this strategy, product certification is a powerful toolthatguaranteesproductquality,buildsconsumerconfidenceandpreventsunfaircompetition. Sustainable production and trade depend on action bymarket players, which is why Solidaridad collaborates withcorporate partners. Solidaridad is a global driving force

behind corporate social responsibility and an active memberoffivesector-wideglobalroundtablesforsustainableproduc-tion and responsible business practices. We work in twelveproduction chains –coffee, tea, cocoa, fruit and vegetables,cotton, textiles, gold, soy, palm oil, sugar cane, livestock andaquaculture– and encourage the transition to a bio-basedeconomy.

Producer supportSolidaridad’s producer support programme helps farmers,miners and manufacturers make the transition to sustain-able production. They receive advice and training in modernproduction methods like innovative farming techniques thatdeliver higher yields of food, feed, fibre and fuel with lesswater and lower inputs. To back this up, Solidaridad fosterslocal business networks that can provide agricultural mate-rials,adviceandfinancialservices,forexampletomeetcreditandinvestmentneeds.

From innovation to mainstreamA key feature of Solidaridad’s organizational culture andstrategy is its capacity to anticipate and respond to newtrends and market opportunities. Solidaridad supportsvarious development mechanisms, communities of changeand stakeholder partnerships. These increasingly developpioneering initiatives for economic and social sustainability,including local access to agricultural inputs and financialservices, upholding good governance, furthering the posi-tion of women farmers and workers, introducing traceabilitysystems and improving access to market information. Onceproven successful, many initiatives can be adapted or scaleduptoothertargetgroupsandothercountries.

InitiativesSolidaridad has launched several pioneering initiatives thathave brought sustainable production into the mainstream.Wewere:

− in1988,founderofMaxHavelaar,thefirstfair-tradelabelforcoffee

− in1991,co-founderoftheEuropeannetworkforfair-tradeinitiatives,theforerunnerofFairtradeInternational(FLO)

− in1996,founderofAgroFairBV,thefirstfair-tradefruitcompany

− in2001,founderofKuyichiBV,thefirstfair-tradejeansbrand

− in2002,co-founderofUtzCertified,alabelforsustainablecoffee,teaandcocoa


Vision and strategy

− in2004,founderoftheMade-ByFoundation,anallianceoffashionbrandsformoresustainableproduction

− from2006topresent,theco-initiator/activememberofroundtablesforsoy(RTRS),palmoil(RSPO),sugarcane(Bonsucro),cotton(BCI)andbeef(GRSB).

Developing marketsThrough representation on commodity round tables andprecision marketing in large consumer regions, Solidaridadbrings producers into contact with dedicated importers,manufacturers,brandsandretailerstobuildmarketsfortheirproducts. To reinforce demand for sustainable products, wecampaigntoraiseconsumerawarenessandencourageawareconsumption.ConsumerchoiceisaidedbylabelssuchasFair-trade, Utz Certified and organic labels. We also help compa-nies to advance their sustainability and social responsibilityagendas and inform the public about progress. Solidaridadregularly conducts market research with renowned researchpartners to keep abreast of changing consumption pattersandidentifynewmarkets.

Local expertise with global outreachSolidaridadisaninternationalnetworkorganizationwithnineregional centres around the world. This allows us to makefull use of local knowledge, experience and expertise. Theeight centres in Latin America, Africa and Asia concentrateon building sustainable value chains, creating local marketsand implementing producer support activities in close coop-eration with local partners. Solidaridad Netherlands focuseson market development in Europe, corporate partnershipprogrammes, fundraising, lobbying and publicity campaigns.The nine regional directors form the policy making body oftheSolidaridadorganization.

Creating sustainable value chains

Smart and sustainable land use, dynamic producer organizations Producers

• Training• Strengthening

organizations• Certification• Reinforcingmarket

positions

Fair and transparent trade

Traders• Directcontactwith

sustainableproducersandbuyers

• Increasethesupplyofsustainablerawmaterials

• Tracesustainablerawmaterialsfromsourcetoconsumer

Corporate social responsibility

Companies

• Dobusinessdirectlywithsustainableproducersandtraders

• Increasethesupplyofsustainablerawmaterials

• Communicateandmarketsustainability

Aware consumption

Consumers

• Raiseawarenessaboutsourcesandproductionmethodsofsustainableproducts

• Supportlabels• Raiseawarenessabout

whattobuy

Solidaridad Network

Supervision

Solidaridad NetworkInternational Supervisory BoardconsistsoftworepresentativeseachfromfourSupervisoryBoards

AsiaSupervisoryBoard AfricaSupervisoryBoard LatinAmericaSupervisoryBoard NetherlandsSupervisoryBoard

Management

The International Executive DirectorreportstotheInternationalSupervisoryBoardfortheSolidaridadNetwork

There are nine regional directors in:

China SouthandSouthEastAsia WestAfrica EastAfrica SouthernAfrica AndesRegion CentralAmerica SouthAmerica Netherlands

Implementation

The International Secretariat supportstheInternationalExecutiveDirector

Nine centres are with staff responsible for developing regional programmes, located in:• Beijing,China• NewDelhi,India• Accra,Ghana• Johannesburg,SouthAfrica• Nairobi,Kenya• Lima,Peru• CiudadGuatemala,Guatemala• BuenosAires,Argentina• Utrecht,Netherlands


Newin2011:farmersupportprogrammes

Accelerating smart, sustainable land-use solutions

In 2009 Solidaridad started a producer support initiative for members of three recognized international commodity round tables: palm oil (RSPO), soy beans (RTRS) and sugar cane (Bonsucro). This € 12 million public-private partnership has benefited 80,000 smallholders and 150,000 agricultural workers.

TheDutchGovernmentrecognizedthevalueoftheprogrammeandinvitedSolidaridadtoupscaleitintoafullfarmersupportprogramme, including the involvement of the round tablesfor Cotton (BCI) and Livestock (GRSB). Last October, thisresulted in the biggest contract in the history of Solidaridad.The Dutch Ministry of Development Cooperation grantedus €29.5million in order to trigger an additional €39millionof co-financing from private partners and other donors. Bytheendof2015thefarmersupportprogrammeaimstohavesupported 400,000 smallholders and 400,000 agriculturalworkers cultivating an area of at least 700,000 hectares.

The need to actIf there’s one thing that binds these five commodity roundtables together, it’s the quest for smart sustainable land use.Together, the farmer support programme commoditiesutilizeover60%oftheworld’savailableagriculturalland,withseveral hundred million farmers feeding –and clothing– therapidly growing consumption habits of the global popula-tion. Hundreds of leading international traders, brands andretailers have come together via these round tables, recog-nizing the urgent need to act. On the demand side there are79millionmorepeople(thecurrentpopulationofGermany)at the dinner table each year. On the supply side, a numberof trends make it more difficult to expand food productionfast enough. Soil erosion, aquifer depletion, loss of croplandto non-agricultural activities, crop-shrinking heat waves, andthe expected reduction in oil supplies are all jeopardizing therequiredincreaseoffoodproduction.Inahistoricallyuniquepact,producersallovertheglobearenowvoluntarilygettingorganized, together with the private sector, civil society,scientistsandgovernmentsviatheumbrellaofferedbytheseroundtables.

Optimizing the resourcesEachroundtablehasdevelopeditsownproductionstandard,with clear criteria and measurable indicators on how best toimprove farming performance. The good news is that quickwins can be made. The need to produce more with less is anirreversible trend. In remote areas Solidaridad’s agronomistshelpfarmersincreasetheefficiencywithwhichtheyuseferti-lizers, water and labour, and encourage them to restore thenaturalprocessesofthelandtoenhancesoilfertility. Livestock is the key to optimising resource use. Byincreasing the productivity of land used for grazing live-stock, overall agricultural potential can increase significantly.Around35%oftheworld’sagriculturalareaisdirectlyorindi-

rectly used for beef production. In Brazil, for instance, thetotalareaofpastureisaround200millionhectares,withrela-tively low stocking rates. Environmentally sound intensifica-tionoflivestockfarmingcouldfreelargeareasoflandforsoy,sugarcane,oilpalmandcotton:morefood,fuelandfibrewithlessland.

Carbon bundles and REDDAgriculture continues to expand. Farmers operating at thelimitsofavailablelandaretemptedtomoveintoareaswhere


Vision and strategy

lossofbiodiversityisaseriousthreat.roundtablesaredevel-oping tools for economically validating environmental andsocial values in regions where food is produced around theworld. In 1992 –at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro– theUnited Nations adopted the Framework Convention onClimate Change. Twenty years later carbon markets employcredits which can be used to encourage types of agriculturethatavoiddeforestation.ItisnowformallyrecognizedbytheUN that deforestation and agriculture together add at least35%tototalglobalcarbondioxideemissions. The essence of the new ‘REDD tool’ (Reducing Emissionsfrom Deforestation and Degradation) is to correct marketfailure by calculating the cost of saving biodiversity andidentify remedies. One approach is to pay for private sectorinitiatives which bundle carbon credits from agriculture tooffset carbon footprints; but calculations show that bridgingfunds from public donors will be needed until at least 2020to finance the lift-off of REDD activities via jurisdiction-wideaccounting and crediting systems. Public and private invest-mentshouldtogethercreateincentivesthatwilltriggerinevi-

tableagriculturalexpansiontowhataredefinedas ‘goareas’,ratherthanto‘nogoareas’.

Building bridgesThe farmer support programme coordinates these inno-vations through expert stakeholders who are members ofits high-level Steering Group. Spin-offs from the farmersupport programme have already resulted in new supportprogrammes funded by the Norwegian and UK govern-ments. These have pledged large amounts of REDD moneyand recognized the round tables as legitimate implementingbodies. Members of the high-level farmer support programmeSteering Group are the five Presidents of the roundtables, supported by experts from Rabobank, IDH, IPAMand WWF-US. The Steering Group not only endorses thework plans and financial reporting of the farmer supportprogramme – it also builds bridges to the large stakeholdercommunitytheyrepresentandbeyond.

Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil

Farmersoperatingatthelimitsofavailablelandaretemptedtomoveintoareaswherelossofbiodiversityisaseriousthreat.OnthephotoproductionofsugarcaneinthefertilecoastalregionofGuatemala.

Photo:PietdenBlanken


Planning,monitoringandevaluation

New multi-annual strategic plan 2011-2015

PlanningThe past year was clearly a year of transition, due to thelaunch of a new multi-annual strategic plan for the period2011-2015, in which the programme objectives and localregionalprioritiesofallSolidaridadregionalexpertisecentresare to be re-aligned. We have specified target groups as wellas expected or required changes, thus explicitly sharingresponsibilities and risks in achieving results. The process offormulatingthisimportantstrategicplan,whichinvolvedfar-reachinganalysesaswellasstrategyandreflectionmeetings,has strengthened the common ground in the SolidaridadNetwork.

MonitoringIn 2011 Solidaridad started developing a network-wideProgramme Management Information System (using theacronym PROMIS), which links the programme and financialinformation that is available across the nine autonomousSolidaridadregionalexpertisecentres.PROMISwillbeimple-mented in 2012. This system will be used to manage all fundsand contracts, and to provide management informationaboutthewaysinwhichfundingisspentaswellastomonitortheprogressofprogrammes.

EvaluationSupported by PSO (an organization engaged in capacitybuilding and learning for change) – and as a follow-up toexternal impact studies carried out in 2010 – all strategiesrelatingtochangesincommoditychainshavebeenreviewedby global teams. This involved exchanging local expertiseand practises in relation to developing commodity produc-tion and market chains, as well as making recommendationsto the network for the development of long-term strategiesdesignedtoachievesustainablechangeswhichwilldirectlyorindirectlybenefitlocalcommunities.

Learning from each otherPSO has also supported the development and exchange ofproduction support tools between regions and betweengroups working on commodities. In particular, trainersworking on cocoa and tea can benefit from the experiencebuilt up in the coffee sector and trainers in African countriescan learn from training tools that are widely used in LatinAmerica. Reflection meetings also made clear that our currentvariety of approaches to planning monitoring and evaluationdo not appear to meet the future needs of the network and

ourpartners.Again,supportedbyPSO,astarthasbeenmadeon working towards a common impact-driven planning andmonitoring approach. Previously, management tools basedon log frames were key. By taking the most useful elementsof that approach and combining these with new tools thatare currently being developed, a result-based measurementapproach will be developed for all Solidaridad organizations.Inthiswaywewillbeabletoimprovethemonitoringofresultsand analyse interrelationship between sustainable changesas well as achievements made in cooperation with ourpartners.


Vision and strategy

Solidaridad Network planning

InthisgraphcocoaandSolidaridadWestAfricaaretakenasexamples.

Year planning

Multi-annual planning

Multi-annual global cocoa plan

Strategicinputfrominternationalcocoaprogrammecoordinator

Annual plan cocoa

consideringbudget,partnerinputandorganizationcapacity

Global cocoa plan

annualreview

Annual report cocoa

onresultscocoaprogrammeWestAfrica

Solidaridad West Africa Solidaridad Network

Solidaridad NetworkSolidaridad West Africa

Multi-annual strategic regional plan

PlanningbySolidaridadregionaldirector

Other Solidaridad centres in cocoa

Other Solidaridad centres in cocoa


Coffee

Cocoa

Tea

Fruitandvegetables

Cotton

Textiles

Gold

Soy

Palmoil

Sugarcane

Bio-basedeconomy

Aquaculture

Livestock

Product groups

Transformingmarketstocreateasustainableeconomy

Photo:SiddharthTripathy Morethen25,000small-scalesoyfarmersinIndiahaveincreasedproductivitywithsupportfromlocalpartnersofSolidaridad.


Solidaridad:Transitionmanager

Transforming markets to create a sustainable economy

The transition to a sustainable economy is without doubt a market process. But the market itself needs to be transformed in order to create socially and ecologically desirable outcomes. The regular economy with its business-as-usual approach is responsible for excluding billions of people, both as producers and as consumers, and for overexploiting scarce natural resources.

An inclusive green economy requires good governance,corporate social responsibility and the involvement of civilsociety.Thewaythemarketcanbetransformedinthedirec-tionofsustainabledevelopmentfollowsthelogicofRogers*,who described the adoption of innovation as a competitiveprocess in which first movers initiate change and, as soon asthe potential is evident to them, are followed by early adop-ters. The early majority then follow in order to gain competi-tive advantage. The late majority come on board to counterincreasing competitive disadvantage. Laggards finally adoptinnovation when there is simply no alternative, for instancebecause ‘old’ technology is no longer available or servicedorwhenthelawdemandschange.

Initial phaseDuring the initial phase small volumes of a product are puton the market. At the same time experiments and initiativespromoting a variety of sustainable parameters emerge. Thecriteriaforsustainabilityarestillbeingdebated.

Intermediate phaseEarlyadoptersareattheforefrontoftheintermediatephase.Sustainability is regarded as relevant, but sustainabilityparametersarenotyettakenintoconsideration.Addedvalueisexpressedinbranding,andopportunitiesaresoughttolinkbusinessprocessestoexistingsustainableinitiatives. The early majority determines the full potential of inno-vation during the intermediate stage. Upscaling to largevolumes and increasing mainstream acceptability unleashesfiercecompetition.Whencriticalmassisreached,thetippingpoint will transform a buyers’ into a sellers’ market, in whichdemandexceedssupply.

Mature phaseThe mature stage is reached when a new equilibrium driveschanges which improve sustainability initiatives. The focus ison improving market models and optimising benefits for thepoor, the environment, and businesses. Legislation, usuallydrawn up as a result of new market practices, is consideredto correct market failures and convert voluntary standardsintogenerallyacceptedrules.Thisprocessoftransformationaffects all of those involved: companies, governments andcivilsocietyorganizations. For civil society organizations new challenges are linkedto the need to take up the role of transition manager. Theymove from blaming and shaming companies for their lackof responsibility to being a constructive partner in organ-ising the process of change. The focus switches from mobi-lising willingness to buy sustainable products to organisingthe availability of sustainable producers to meet growingdemand. After having worked with ideology-based conceptsinanichemarkettheyswitchtomainstreamapproachessuchasvalue-basedinnovation. Solidaridadhasshapeditsinternalstructurestomeetthesenew challenges. From project to programme, from nationalexpertise to commodity expertise, from a partner to a chainperspective, from NGO intervention to Private Public Part-nerships,fromgrantstoamixtureoffundingthroughgrants,creditsandequity,andfromaDutch-basedtoaninternationalnetworkorganization.

* EverettRogers,DiffusionofInnovations

Rogers’innovationtheory

Innovators2.5%

Earlyadopters13.5%

Earlymajority34%

Latemajority34%

Laggards16%


Productgroups

Moving towards sustainable development

Initial phase• Sustainability is possible

Intermediate phase• Sustainability is relevant

Mature phase• Sustainability is dominant

Market

– First-moversstartoperations– Nichemarket– Piloting– Innovativedevelopment

– Followersjoin– Criticalmass– Upscaling– Relevantdevelopment

– Laggardsaccept– Licencetooperate– Mainstreaming– Dominantdevelopment

Incentives

– First-moveradvantage– Creatingbrandvalue– Accesstonewmarketsofawareconsumers

– Addedvalueinbrandingandreputationmanagement

– Securinglong-terminterestinasustainablesupplychain

– Changebecomesinevitable– Sustainabilityasamarket‘qualifier’– Sustainabilityasanintegralaspectofproduct

quality

Characteristicsofthetransformationprocess

– Lackofcommonvisionandaction– Nocoordinationofprojects– Learningbydoing– Uncontrolledgrowth,competitionand

proliferationofstandards– Ideology-basedinnovation

– Growingunderstandingoftheneedforchangeandwillingnesstocooperate

– Continuousimprovementsanddevelopmentofbestpractices

– Multi-certification,mutualrecognition,growingcooperation

– Control-basedinnovaton

– Broadconsensusonurgencyandashared‘theoryofchange’

– Pre-competitivecooperation– Science-basedapproachandstandardisation– Harmonisedstandards– Costreductionsandimprovedperfomances– Value-basedinnovation

Changeagents

– FirstmovercompaniesandsupportiveCivilSocietyOrganisations

– Consumerpreferences– Publicdebate

– LeadingAbrandsandretailers– Companycommitment– Publicsupport

– Legislationandregulationbygoverments– Institutionalchange– Sector-wideinvolvement– Generalpublicawareness

Facilitator’sroleSolidaridadandCivilSocietyOrganisations

– GAPanalysisforsustainableproduction– Pilotingproducersupportprogrammes

towardssmartandsustainablelanduse– Buildingcoalitionswithfirst-mover

companies– Multi-stakeholdercreationofstandards

forsustainableproductsandmarketacceptance

– Learnandimprove

– Developmonitoringandevaluationinstumentstoimproveimpact

– Upscaleproducersupportprogrammesinalliances,tooldevelopment,E-learning.

– Expandmenbershipofbusinessalliancesandcreatenewoneswithfinancialinstitutions,centresofexpertise,etc.

– Facilitateharmonisationofstandardsandcost-effectivepractices

– Analyseandaddressstructurallimitstogrowth

– Developjointcapacitybuildingprogrammeswithgovernmentsandinternationalinstitutions

– Putpressureonlaggards– Advocacyandlobbyingforeffectivelegislation

andregulationforsustainablegrowth

Photos:H.P.A

ltingvonGeusau;photom

iddle:SiddharthTripathy

Solidaridad:Transitionmanager


Coffee

Insight and analysis bring farmers real gains

While small-scale farmers are attracted to certification by the promise of higher prices, most of them lack the knowledge and skills they need to maximize output sustainably and cost-effectively. Through programmes that show them how to analyze and improve their own performance, Solidaridad is gradually helping them get better results.

Programme setting Certification and support programs take various approachesto improving small farmers’ productivity and sustainability,but do not always focus on the main priority: individual farmincomes. This is now where Solidarity starts, using farmers’desireforabetterincometocatalyzealearningprocessthatachievessignificantchangesonthefarm.

Insight that brings real results: a family affairThepastyearwasachallengingone,aschangesinfundingandinternational organization absorbed some of the time thatshould have gone into support and development work. Asmany farmers don’t see how inefficiencies and bad practicesaffect their income, Solidaridad now focuses on increasingtheir insight into cost factors – an excellent motivator forachieving other improvements later. This approach involvestrainers who have stripped complex methodologies to thecoreprioritiesoffarmersandknowexactlywhichapproachesworkinpractice.Giventoolsthathelptomeasuretheresultsof their actions in the field, some families have doubled andeven tripled their incomes. Very often, the calculations thatunderlaytheseachievementsweredonebythefarmer’schil-dren.

Expanded farmer improvement system The improved version of the farmer improvement systemin Colombia was replicated in four new countries in Latin

America. The initial results were very good: farmers sawimmediate effects in economic terms, and trainers saw how,by making their methods even more concrete, they couldfurtherimprovefarmers’understanding.

Motivating people for structural collaboration Working with the Sustainable Commodity AssistanceNetwork (SCAN), Solidaridad successfully motivated threemain certification programmes and various stakeholders toinitiate structural collaboration in Vietnam, Colombia, EastAfrica, Peru and Guatemala. These achievements reflectSolidaridad’s position as a valued neutral partner that under-stands the sector and can contribute practical implementa-tionskills.

Lessons learned The end of Dutch government MFS funding in 2010 showedhow dangerous it can be to depend on a single donor. Soli-daridadisnowfurtherimprovingitsfundingmodelbydiversi-fyingdonorsandattractingdifferentkindofdonors,includingprivateones,whichwillallowittofocusonitscoreobjectives.

Opportunities and threatsFew other organizations rival Solidaridad’s knowledge ofcertification and implementation, or its understanding ofthe wider coffee chain. Its main weakness is the shortage ofmanpower for fundraising and promotion. Major European

Budgets and results

Objective E:MainexpectedresultsR:Realisedresultsin2011

Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000

ContributionsbySolidaridadregionalcentres

ProducerdevelopmentMovingtowardssustainablefarmingandcertification

Supportfarmersin12countriesimprovingproductivity,productquality,profitabilityandreachcertification.E:145,355–R:169,646farmerssupported.

35 2,934 2,270 1.531 EastAfrica,CentralAmerica,Andes,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Creatinganenablingenvironmentandtrainingcapacity

Improvetrainingcapacitybyimprovingtrainingmaterialsandtrainthetrainers.E:653–R:855trainerstrained.

15 810 476 424 EastAfrica,CentralAmerica,Andes,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Genderequity Integrategenderandyouthequityinprojectsbyinvolvingallfamilymembersintraining.E:15–R:15

7 184 80 12 EastAfrica,CentralAmerica,Andes,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Mainstreamingfarmersupportandcertification

Engagefarmerorganizations,tradersandcoffeecompaniesinsustainablemodelsincooperationwithSolidaridad.E:200–R:250

5 833 534 329 EastAfrica,CentralAmerica,Andes,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Total global budget x €1,000 4,761 3,360 2,296


ProductgroupsCoffee

buyers such as Nestlé, Sara Lee and Kraft are committed toincreasingtheirpurchasesofsustainableandcertifiedcoffeeto 50% by 2015 – a real opportunity. To counter the dangerthat the sector is pushed too quickly into certification, Soli-daridad starts with the best farmers and works downwards,spreading the certification process over a three-year period.Social and environment issues are address in year two, andcertificationawardedonlyinyearthree.

Global partnerships In over fifteen countries, the coffee programme is in contactwith coffee boards, estates, farmer’s co-operatives, exporterorganizations, research institutes, local NGOs and imple-menters, ministries, and government bodies at all levels –some250organizationsinall.Formalizedworkingagreementsand Memoranda of Understanding with these organizationsarethefruitofoverfiveyears’workonestablishingcommonground.Sincethechangeofstrategicdirectionin2010,whenSolidaridad became a neutral facilitator working on multiplecertificationprogramswithkeyactorsinthechain,thefocusoftheserelationshipshasbecomeslightlymorecollaborativeandfruitful. The following organizations were particularly importantin 2011: 4C Association, Rainforest Alliance, Utz Certified, theColombiancoffeeboardFNC,aVietnameseNGOspecializedin training farmers (CDC) and two global traders: ArmajaroandECOM.

Donors Currently the main donor is Irish Aid, which fundsprogrammes in Central America and East Africa. In 2011,

the programme in Central America was extended by 18months and in East Africa, the chances of a second five-yearprogramme are good. The total funding received from IrishAid in 2011 was €1,685,878. The EU granted funds to extendthe farmer support programme in Nicaragua for two andhalf years and PSO continued to support learning within thenetwork, improving training methodologies and transferringexperiencetoothercommodities.ThemainchallengeforthecoffeeprogrammeistoattractnewfundingandSolidaridadisincontactwithseveralnewdonors.

Impact In 2011 two impact studies were carried out on the coffeeprogramme in Central America, one by CIET on PROCASO,which increased productivity by 24% in Honduras between2008 and 2011. The second impact study –commissionedby Irish Aid– revealed that sales of certified coffees (FLOand Utz Certified) from Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvadorand Guatemala virtually trebled over the five-year period,resulting in additional annual incomes for producers worthUS$4.9 million. Furthermore, with a significant share oftotal production certified (30% in Nicaragua and 20% inHonduras), fair and ethical trade is no longer a niche marketbutisnowcapableofmakingsignificantimpactbeyondimme-diatebeneficiariese.g.byinfluencingpricesandstandardsonthe wider market. A positive assessment of training meth-odologies was made by two external consultants and theirrecommendations for further improvements are addressedin the work plans for 2012. Despite the big challenges in theEastern Africa region, due to drought, total Utz Certified andFLOcoffeevolumestherehaveincreased.

CoffeetraininginKenya.BernardNjoroge(SMSprojectsupervisor)showingthevisitingfarmersoftheRithoFarmersCo-opSociety(KiambuCounty)ingredientsforcompostwhicharefoundaroundthefarm.

Photo:H.P.A

ltingvonGeusau


Tea

Creating sustainability standards across Asia

Tea is unique because it’s grown throughout Asia and most tea is also consumed in Asia. In 2011 Solidaridad facilitated the development of sustainability guidelines for the China tea industry and established the Lestari national sustainability standard for Indonesian tea. Work also started on developing an Indian baseline tea standard.

After water, tea is the most widely consumed drink in theworld.Teapickingandprocessingprovidelivelihoodsforover15million people. However, rising production costs coupledwith low global tea prices often results in poor quality tea,inadequate returns for smallholders, and poor workingconditions and low wages for labourers. Tight profit marginsencourage unsustainable practices, increasing pressure onenvironment. Tea is grown in some of the most ecologicallysensitive areas in the world, including reserved forests, andoftenaffectsindigenouspeoples.

Key achievementsIn 2011 Solidaridad emerged as a trusted partner in all majortea producing and consuming countries across four conti-nents.Multi-stakeholdernationalreferencegroupsinseveralproducing countries strengthened local ownership andacceptance of international sustainability standards. Soli-daridad helped thousands of tea farmers to adopt the UtzCertified sustainability standard this year. Joint audits wereinitiated with Utz Certified and Rain Forest Alliance (RFA) toreduce certification costs in Kenya, while national sustain-abilitystandardswereestablishedinIndonesiaandChina. Around 8,000 smallholders in West Java, Indonesia were

certified under the national Lestari standard and, in the firstyear, most producers saw a 20% increase in income. Solidar-idadfocusedonsmallholders,introducinginnovativemecha-nisms such as joint certification to reduce costs. It facilitatedUtz and RFA certification of two smallholder tea companiesin Kenya, where 11,500 farmers grow tea on 2,620 hectares.Solidaridad further played a critical role in the developmentof sustainability guidelines for tea in China. The sustainabilityguideline has been since included in China’s ‘12th Five-YearPlan’.

ChallengesGlobal buyers have yet to develop sustainability strategiesfor Asia, which has 70% of the tea market worldwide. FallingpricesintheEUarereducingtheleveragethatglobalcompa-niescanhaveonlocalproducers.Asaresult,SolidaridadwasunabletoscaleupactivitiesinIndiaandChina.However,closecooperation with tea companies in Asia is helping them toprocure and market sustainable tea. The strategy is to workwith stakeholders to establish the concept of sustainabletea in daily practice as something with intrinsic value ratherthanpurelyrespondingtocompliancepressures.Sinceglobaltea prices are unlikely to increase significantly, the challenge

Budgets and results

Indicator E:MainexpectedresultsR:Realisedresultsin2011

Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realised

x€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Numberofproducersandworkerswhohavebeenenabledtoadopt(certified)sustainablepractices

E:66,700smallholders,7,500workersR:72,596smallholders,18,571workers

21 984 719 652 EastandCentralAfrica,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Numberofhectareswhereteaisproducedunderbetterconditions

E:20,000hectareR:31,700hectare

EastandCentralAfrica,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Increasevolumeofcertifiedteaproducedbyteasmallholders

E:–*R:37,000MT*

EastandCentralAfrica,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia

IncreasevolumesofcertifiedteainnewmarketsofAsia

E:3,000MTR:5,800MT

2 30 30 50 SouthandSouthEastAsia

IncreasevolumesofcertifiedteatradedinEU

E:3,500MTR:3,027MT

1 347 180 187 Netherlands

Numberofcompanies/brandsengagedinsustainablemodelsincooperationwithSolidaridad

E:9companiesR:4internationaland5domestic

3 Netherlands,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Total 1,361 929 889

*Thetargetsetfor2011wascertifiedsmallholderteabought.Thistargetcannot(yet)beestimated.Realisedtargetreferstocertifiedsmallholderteaproduced.

21 984 719 652

347 180 187


ProductgroupsTea

will be to develop sustainability solutions that are economi-cally viable and yet address global social and environmentalconcerns.

Opportunities and threatsSolidaridadhasagoodtrackrecordinallmajorteaproducingcountries, where it works closely with governments, small-holder associations, standards bodies and NGOs. Althoughthere are partnerships with regional tea brands, global stra-tegic partnerships still need to be formed. New researchshowing the health benefits of tea and efforts to promote itas a health drink may result in an increased focus on sustain-ability and national sustainability standards may provide astepping stone towards international standards. With threedecades of experience of developing consumer assurancesystems Solidaridad is in a good position to support thesedevelopments.

Lessons learned: partnership paysThebiggestbarrierfortheprogrammewasthelackofglobalstrategic partnerships, which are necessary to play a rolein influencing the major tea companies. Nevertheless, Soli-daridadhasinitiateddiscussionswiththemaboutdevelopingpartnerships based on the principles of equity, transparencyand mutual benefit. One success in 2011 was a partnershipwith Hindustan Unilever to jointly develop a sustainabilitystandard suited to Indian tea producers. Other solutionsinclude joint audits, local standard development, reducingauditingfees,innovationsinreducingcosts,andcooperationwith key stakeholders including governments. Solidaridadwillbuilditscapacityonthedemandside,particularlyinAsia,

while simultaneously maintaining global leadership on thesupplyside.

FinanceSolidaridad’s tea programme is supported by the TeaImprovement Programme (TIP), which is co-funded by theIDH Sustainable Trade Initiative. TIP is a consortium of thelargest tea companies in Europe and the most importantcertifiers and NGOs working on sustainable tea productionin Africa and Asia. Solidaridad also partners with the DouweEgbertsFoundation,whichfocusesonsustainablecoffeeandtea,workingwithsmall-scaleproducers.TheFlemishgovern-mentagencyVAIS/FICAsupportstheteaactivitiesinMozam-biqueandSouthAfrica.Finally,thereareplanstoenterintoatri-partite collaboration with Sari Wangi and World Bank ondevelopingateasmallholderstradingcompanyinIndonesia.

Impact In the last three years, over 85,000 smallholders and 20,000workers have been trained. As a result, many of them havebeen able to reduce chemical applications without affectingyields,haveimprovedtheirtea-pluckingpracticesandarenowlinkedtohighvaluesupplychains.Thishasledtoincreasesinrevenues (lower inputs combined with higher quality) andbetter environmental management. In most estates, workingconditions have also improved. Together with Utz Certified,a long-term impact study was started in Kenya and Malawi in2010.In2012,theteateamplanstoconductacomprehensiveglobalimpactstudyfortheperiod2008-12tofurtherevaluatetheimpactoftheprogramme.

SmallholdersinIndonesiawerecertifiedunderthenewnationalLestaristandardand,inthefirstyear,mostproducersexperienceda20%increaseinincome.

Photo:RogervanZaal


Cocoa

Becoming stronger in the sustainable cocoa market

Solidaridad has built up a sound track record and established contacts with most players in the sector in West Africa. The involvement is twin-track: with farmers and with traders. Both tracks are successful and Solidaridad is now in a position to scale up its producer-support programme in the year ahead.

The programme context The cocoa growing regions are Africa, Asia, Central AmericaandSouthAmerica(allwithin20degreesoftheequator)and70%ofcocoacomesfromWestAfrica.Theannualincreaseindemandforcocoaisexpectedtogrowby3%peryearforthenext few years. Every year, more than 5million family farmsin countries such as Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon,Vietnam, Indonesia and Brazil produce about 3million tonsof cocoa beans. But the number of people who depend oncocoa for their livelihood worldwide is much higher: around40-50million.Inadditiontoitsuseasfood,cocoaismadeintosoapsandcosmetics.Thecurrentannualglobalmarketvalueofthecocoacropisapproximately$5billion. In2011thewarinIvoryCoastseverelyaffectedtheSolidar-idad programme there. What’s more, the many smallholdersand workers in the sector often don’t benefit sufficiently.By building supply-chain partnerships involving producers,traders,manufacturersandretailers,Solidaridadissupportingnewapproachestotechnologytransfer,organizationaldevel-

opment, as well as rural credit and benefit sharing. Theseinnovations are shared and disseminated through industryplatforms such as the national cocoa stakeholder forumswhichSolidaridadorganizedInGhanaandNigeria.

Progress madeIn 2011 Solidaridad reinforced existing relationships andestablished new ones with government regulatory bodies inthe cocoa sector in Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon. In Ghanathis led to the election of Solidaridad to the Board of thenewcocoaextensionservice.Theideaistopromotesocially,economically and environmentally responsible productionand create a platform for much needed interventions suchas securing credit, fertilizer distribution and rehabilitation ofexhaustedland. Solidaridad organizes regular partnership meetings forthe cocoa programme in Ghana in order to exchange experi-ences.Forexample,acloserrelationshipwasdevelopedwiththe Cocoa Marketing Company and the government agency

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Small-scaleproducersadopt(certified)sustainablepractices

Farmerstrained:E:42,000–R:98,623Farmerscertified:E:22,000–R:33,376Moreproducerorganizationsinvolvedinimprovementprogrammes:R:76

13 2,125 2,100 2,500 WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands,Andes,SouthAmerica

CapacityenhancedforUtzCertification

Expectedandrealised:1projectwithunorganizedfarmersICStrainingprogrammescarriedout:E:9–R:15Expectedandrealised:3genderprojectsProjectswithcocoatraders:E:3–R:2Expectedandrealised:1biodiversityprojectTechnicalAssistantstrained:E:50–R:202

8 639 850 1,000 WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands,Andes

Governmentsandotherstakeholdersacceptmorevoluntarystandards

Nationalstakeholdersconferencesorganised:E:6–R:227organizationssupportsustainablecocoagrowingandtrade

3 125 65 75 WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Qualitycollaborationwithcocoastakeholdersandpotentialpartners

E:ImprovedcollaborationwithgovernmentalinstitutionsinIndonesia,Vietnam,IvoryCoastandGhana.R:Cocobod(Ghana),CRIN(Nigeria)andNRGKakalestari(Indonesia)

3 250 239 231 WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Forsustainablemarket:cocoachainactorsareeffectivelylinkedandfocusonqualityandresponsibilityforimprovementsinnationalmarkets

Cooperationwithcompaniessellingsustainablecocoa:R:10

1 185 180 250 SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands



ProductgroupsCocoa

for cocoa in Ghana COCOBOD. And Solidaridad representa-tives attended several meetings to help arrive at a betterunderstanding of the implications of certification and trace-abilityrequirements. A close partnership has been formed with the Germandevelopment cooperation organization GIZ on expandingthe Cocoa Certification Enhancement programme for whichamemorandumofunderstandingwassignedin2011.Solidar-idadwillrolloutthisprogrammein2012inGhana,NigeriaandIvoryCoast.

Lessons learned CameroonSolidaridad organized a stakeholder meeting and built upgoodrelationshipswithcocoaregulatingbodies.NigeriaRelationshipswereestablishedwithanumberofcocoastake-holders. Solidaridad organized a national training workshopon standards and certification and trained 66 lead farmerson good agricultural practices. Projects are in progress withfivetradingcompanies,twoofwhichreceivedtechnicalassis-tancefromSolidaridad.Ivory CoastSolidaridad has developed a strong relationship with Deader,the cocoa extension service in Ivory Coast. In collaborationwithprivatepartnersandAnader,47cooperativeswithatotalof 24,000 farmer members, achieved certification. Self-helpgroups for women have been set up and 600 women havebeen trained on HIV/AIDS, safe use of pesticides, the use ofwater and sanitation, and preventing malaria. A further 30women achieved financial autonomy by setting up cocoanurseries,selling13,000seedlings.

Opportunities and threats The pressure on farmers and traders to deliver certifiedcocoa is increasing. However, in-depth training is neededto create a profound change in farming practices. Certifica-tion does not necessarily lead to sustainability. Often theeconomic element is not sufficiently taken into account andcertification is therefore vulnerable to those who criticise it.Other impediments, such as insufficient access to finance,theneedforlandrehabilitation,andalackofplantingmaterialandfertilizers,alsoneedtobeaddressed.

Global partnerships Solidaridad currently mostly works with companies such asMars, Cargill, Nestle and Armajaro on the African continent,but opportunities are also emerging to form partnershipswith them in Latin America and Asia as well. With Mars aGlobal partnership is developing, covering both productionandconsumption.

Donors MajordonorsforthecurrentSolidaridadcocoaprogrammesin Africa are the Dutch sustainable trade initiative IDH, theWorld Cocoa Foundation, and the trading/retail companiesCargill,ArmajaroandMars.

Impact Although the cocoa programme has not yet been fully evalu-ated, increases in yields of up to 40% have been reported.Soliodaridad West Africa carried out studies to establish abaseline for projects which will be carried out in Ghana andIvory Coast in 2012. Next year’s annual report will providedetailsoftheimpactoftheseprojects.

CocoainGhana.Solidaridadreinforcedexistingrelationshipsandestablishednewoneswithgovernmentregulatorybodies.

Photo:KekeKeukelaar


Fruitandvegetables

Gradual progress in fruit and vegetable sector

In 2011, the World Banana Forum (WBF) was finally up and running – an important platform for working towards sustainability throughout the sector. With regard to horticulture, Solidaridad developed a programme funded by the Dutch embassy in Kenya to support sustainability in the fruit and vegetable sector, focusing especially on local and regional markets.

Programme setting The world’s fruit and vegetable sector is burdened by soildegradation and excessive water and pesticide use. Workingconditions on plantations are often poor, and smallholdersare vulnerable. As individual crops and producer countrieseach face specific problems, Solidaridad intends to pursuestrategiesthataddressonkeyissuesinselectedregions,suchasthoseinKenya(seebelow).

Progress Much of Solidaridad’s progress in 2011 took place behind thescenes. With other partners to the WBF, steps were madetowards pre-competitive collaboration. In view of the fiercecompetitionandlackoftransparencyinthesectoronlyafewyearsago,theserepresentarealadvance. Through the IDH –the sustainable trade initiative fundedby the Dutch government– Solidaridad and other partnersalso worked with major Dutch retailers and traders towardsan agreement designed to make the country’s fresh producesectormoresustainable.Stakeholdersareexpectedtosignasector-widecovenantin2012.

Getting nearer to real collaboration on bananasThrough the WBF, companies, unions, retailers, centres ofexpertise and civil society organizations such as Solidaridaddiscussed the options for collaborative pre-competitiveresearch on reduced pesticide use, and on the effects ofpesticides on human health and the environment. These

proposalsshouldbefinalisedinFebruary2012,attheForum’ssecondassembly.

Kenya horticulture project marks the way ahead Solidaridad’s programme to promote sustainability withinKenya’shorticulturesectorwasstarted,givingprioritytolocaland regional food supply. This is connected to internationalsupply chains. By strengthening the country’s horticulturalexportsector,theaimistobuildoverallhorticulturalcapacity,thussafeguardingnationalfoodsecurity.

Objectives and results Around 12,700 producers and workers have been given thecapacity to adopt (certified) sustainable practices. Fiftythree groups are now capable of engaging in improvementprogrammes, including multi-certification programmes,and seven private companies are committed to engaging insustainabilityincooperationwithSolidaridad. The EU’s block grants to South Africa and to Frutas delBosque in Peru still need to be finalized. However, a bananaprogramme started in Northern Peru and Solidaridad AndesregionhasstartedworkingonabananasectorprogrammeinColombia. InWestAfricaasustainablepineappleprogrammeisbeingfunded by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für InternationaleZusammenarbeit (GIZ) and in East Africa a sustainable horti-cultureprogrammestartedattheendof2011.

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Numberofproducersandworkerswhohavebeenenabledtoadopt(certified)sustainablepractices

Farmersandworkerssupported:E:10,000–R:12,700

7 122 183 1,239 Andes,SouthAmerica,SouthernAfrica,WestAfrica,EastandCentralAfrica,Netherlands

Numberofproducerorganizationscapableofandengaginginimprovementprogrammesincluding(multi)-certificationprogrammes

Groupssupported:E:40–R:53 4 61 91 325 Andes,SouthAmerica,SouthernAfrica,WestAfrica,EastandCentralAfrica,Netherlands

Numberofcompanies/brandsengagedinsustainablemodelsincooperationwithSolidaridad

E:SupportWorldBananaForumR:WBFdevelopedconcreteplansDirectcooperationwithprivatecompanies:E:10–R:7.

6 94 157 225 Andes,SouthAmerica,SouthernAfrica,WestAfrica,EastandCentralAfrica,Netherlands

Total global budget x €1,000 277 431 1,789


ProductgroupsFruits

Lessons learned Despiteanumberofstudiesin2011,Solidaridadwasunabletostartimplementingaplantomaketheinternationalfruitjuicemarketmoresustainable.Thiswaslargelybecauseofthetimeneeded to get commitment from market actors – a usefulreminder that such crucial inputs require lengthy prepara-tion.Thestartisexpectedinthecourseof2012.

Opportunities and threats The biggest barrier is the lack of international programmefunding for the Kenyan horticulture programme into WestAfrica and South Asia. Fruit and vegetables are on theother hand crucial for local food safety, which is an issue ofincreasing importance. Solidaridad will work on building aprogrammeinthatarea. The Companies can have an enormous influence onpractices and working conditions, with sustainability as anemergingbrandvalue.Butintheinternationalfruitandvege-tablesectorconsumerbrandsplayamarginalroleandcannotbe the drivers of change. This explains Solidaridad’s belief infocusing on specific products in specific regions. Things aredifferentinthejuicesector,whereSolidaridad’sconsultationswith Friesland Campina suggest that progress may be drivenbybrandsinthejuicesector.

Global partnerships Solidaridad works with three leading fruit companies in theWBF: Chiquita, Dole and Fyffes. Such work will be comple-

mented by regional collaboration in countries such asColombiaandPeru.Thesecompaniesarealsopotentialpart-nersinthepineapplesector.FrieslandCampinaisseenasthemain partner in the fruit juice sector. A proposal for collabo-ration put together in 2011 is expected to lead to concreteresultsin2012.

Donors Through Solidaridad Andes, the Peruvian government isfunding a programme for improving the quality of small-holders’practicesandorganizationsinordertocreateaccesstoexportmarkets.Suchsupportfromthelocalgovernmentisvery valuable. Funding for Solidaridad East Africa is providedby the Dutch embassy in Kenya and Solidaridad West Africareceives funding from GIZ; Solidaridad Netherlands receivedfundingfromtheEU.

Impacts In view of the preliminary nature of the fruit and vegeta-bles programme, no programme-wide impact studies wereconductedin2011.

Solidaridad’sprogrammeforpromotingsustainabilitywithinKenya’shorticulturesectorisgivingprioritytolocalandregionalfoodsupply.

Photo:H.P.A

ltingvonGeusau


Cotton

Programme got boost from big name retailers

In 2011 Solidaridad expanded its producer-support programmes to more cotton farmers and intensified its relationship with brands and retailers. The involvement of game-changing names such as Adidas, Levi Strauss & co and H & M is making a real difference to these programmes, which now reach up to 75,000 farmers in organic, fair-trade and better cotton-farming practices.

Programme settingAlthoughsmallholdersindevelopingcountriesproduce80%oftheworld’scotton,manyliveinfinancialhardship,withlow,unstable prices preventing them from paying off the debtstheyincurtomakenecessaryinvestmentsinseeds,fertilizersand pesticides. With help from Solidaridad, they can adopt amore sustainable system that brings real personal and envi-ronmentalimprovements.

Involving nearly twice as many farmers in 2011 Overall, the scope of the cotton programme nearly doubledin 2011, having expanded to 75,000 farmers from 39,000in 2010. Quantitative and anecdotal evidence indicate thatSolidaridad’s programmes are bringing many improvements,particularlyintermsoflivelihoods,netincomes,labourcondi-tionsandwateruse. Cotton cultivation places a heavy burden on the environ-ment, requiring tons of toxic pesticides and vast amountsof irrigation water. Solidaridad therefore encourages theproduction and purchase of a different type of system:organic cotton, Fairtrade cotton or Better Cotton. Betweenthem, these three systems –which are complementary, eachaddressing different aspects of sustainability– can make areal difference in the cotton supply chain. Partner brandsand retailers participated in several field trips and work-shops, which provided interesting learning points and tradelinkeagesbetweenfarmersandthecompanies.

BCI launched in ChinaPreparations in 2010 led to the launch of the Better CottonInitiative(BCI)inChinathroughthreepilotprojects–thefirstsuchprogrammeinChina.SolidaridadwasthekeypartnerinachievingrecognitionofBCI.InIndiaandMali,thefirstprojectresults made it possible to expand BCI activities there. TheseprojectsaresupportedthroughtheBetterCottonFastTrackProgram,aconsortiumofpublicandprivateinvestors.

ProCotton reaches East Africa Another significant Development was presented at the ICACconference in Argentina: the extension of the ProCottonprogramme into East Africa (Tanzania and Zambia),supportedbyCommonFundforCommodities.EnablingSoli-daridad’s support to reach the region’s really poor farmers,this will create bottom-up support for increasing capacity,yieldsandsustainability.

Opportunities and threats Solidaridad’s cotton programme has several strengths,especially its integration from cotton to garment, its trackrecord, and its contacts with leading brands such as H&M,Levi Strauss&co, Marks & Spencer and Adidas – which inthemselvesbringenormousopportunities.Thesecompaniesare closely involved in BCI; they provide funds for producersupport programmes and commit to buying BCI bales fromthe projects. A possible threat to the programmes is theweak interest so far in supporting and financing projects by

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Farmerscultivatecottoninasmarterandmoresustainableway

40,000farmersinprogramme75,000farmersunderprogramme

23 910 1,873 555 Netherlands,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia,EastandCentralAfrica,WestAfrica,Andes,SouthAmerica

Supportforeffectivemulti-stakeholderinitiativesinsustainablecotton

ParticipationinBCIRealised 1 303 300 185 Netherlands

Markettransformationthroughpartnershipwithleadingbrands/retailers

Collaborationwith7brands/retailersCollaborationwith8brands/retailers

3 227 140 139 Netherlands,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Endorsementbylocalgovernmentsofsustainablecottonprogramme

LocalgovernmentsupportsprogrammeinonecountryRealised

1 76 10 46 China

Total global budget x €1,000 1,516 2,323 925


ProductgroupsCotton

governments in China and India – countries that are key tothe strategy, and where a mid- to long-term successful exitstrategywilldependonlocalembeddingoftheprogramme.Lessons learned Thanks to volatile prices and supplies, buying practicesand official CSR statements often fail to match up, a situa-tion exacerbated by the length and complexity of the chain.Longer-termrelationshipsandcommitmentsareessentialtoincreasingsuppliesandintegratingsustainability.

Global partnershipsSolidaridad’s five-year relationship with the Danish clothingchain Jackpot started with Made-By. As well as supportingsocial projects in factories, they were a pioneering user oforganic cotton. The partnership between Jackpot, Chetna,and Solidaridad is unique, and it was presented as best prac-tice at the Textile Exchange conference in Barcelona inSeptember. Jackpot has a special collection in which €5 onevery item sold goes to the Chetna project. Since 2011, it hasalsoextendeditspartnershipwithSolidaridadonBCI. Large brands and retailers show great interest in the fieldwork that Solidaridad does for cotton farmers togetherwith local partners. In 2011 purchasers, CSR managers andsenior managers from Levi Strauss & Co, H&M, Adidas andRabobank Foundation visited cotton projects in India. Theywere informed on general cotton farming practices as wellas on producer organising, monitoring and reporting. Since

mostbrandsandretailersbuydirectlyfromgarmentingfacto-ries,theyhavenocluewheretheircottoncomesfromandformanyitwastheirfirstvisittocottonfields.

Donors Main donors are the Better Cotton Fast Track Fund (BCIfarm projects in India, Mali and China); Rabobank Founda-tion (ProCotton programme; Common Fund For Commodi-ties (ProCotton East Africa); and Ford Foundation (ChetnaOrganic and initial BCI projects in India). Other importantdonors:TuringFoundation(co-financingoftheBCIprojectinMali);GSRDFoundation(co-financingoftheChetnaOrganicand ProCotton in India); and DNB (co-financing of theProCotton programme). Under the ProCotton programmefinancialserviceswerearrangedviaRabobank.

Impact In 2011 the cotton programme started on a new five-yearcycle. In 2015 Solidaridad expects to complete an extensiveexternal impact study similar to the one done by NijenrodeUniversity for 2007-2010. Quantitative and qualitative data isalready being collected from the individual projects. Variousinputs are being used to measure year-on-year progress, forexample farm-diary data from projects and ‘control’ farmerson pesticide use and net income. Similarly, interview withfarmers will help provide qualitative assessments of farmers’andworkers’livelihoods.

Biosustaincottongin,Tanzania.Theseedcottonisdroppedintotheginbyhandwheretheseedisseparatedfromcottonlint.

Photo:H.P.A

ltingvonGeusau


Textiles

Focus shifts from compliance to capacity-building

Two well-publicised issues exemplified the relevance of Solidaridad’s activities in 2011. The first was the environmental impact of so-called wet processing (textile dyeing and finishing). The second involved questioning the involvement of textile units in Sumangali schemes in southern India. Both showed the importance of innovative projects to develop better practice in factories.

Programme setting From cotton to garment, the textile supply chain faces avariety of social and environmental challenges. Throughoutthechain,Solidaridadanditspartnersworktoimprovelabourconditionsandreducepollution,trainingworkersandhelpingfactories implement structural improvements. By encour-aging fashion brands to buy ethically produced textiles, Soli-daridad and its partners also aim to improve responsibletextilemanufacturers’accesstomarkets.

Pioneering new approaches In 2011 important steps were taken in a new direction: theoriginal focus on compliance is now leading to more innova-tive approaches to problem-solving. Solidaridad is startingtoworkinfactoriestofindsolutionstothesocialorenviron-mentalissuesthatarespecifictoalocalsituation. Theactivities,whichareclusteredindesignatedgeograph-ical areas in Bangladesh, China, India and Vietnam, involvethe broadest possible range of local stakeholders in capacitybuilding.Thein-factoryactivitiesincludetrainingforworkersand management and technical advice on changes inprocessesandinvestmentsinequipmentandmachinery.Thefactory projects are complemented with activities to engagelocal civil society and government. Importantly, Solidaridadis now itself seen as a serious stakeholder by an increasingnumber of market players. As results are achieved, thestrategyistoextendsuchactivitiestonewfactorieswithinthesamegeographicalcluster.

Helping dye houses to save on water and energy Through pilot projects in China and Bangladesh Solidar-idad brought significant environmental improvements todye houses which supply major brands such as H&M, LeviStrauss&Co and Mothercare. Considerable savings of waterand energy have been achieved. Solidaridad now intends toextendtheschemetoafurther500dyersinthecomingyears,whilealsofocusingonchemicaluseandeffluentemissions.

Seeking solutions for Sumangali UndertheSumangalischeme,youngwomenfrompoorback-grounds are offered three-year work contracts at sewingunits, which includes a lump sum that can be used to pay adowry.However,thisarrangementhasbeendescribedbytheILO as one of the ‘worst forms of child labour’. Solidaridad isnowacceptedasaparticipantinthisdebateandishelpingtofind culturally appropriate solutions that will improve labourconditionsandguaranteethatworkersarepaidinfull.

The challenges of upscalingSuccessful pilots on sustainable processing with 25 dyers inBangladesh and China show that this programme could beextendedto500dyersinthenextfouryears.Asittakestimetomakethefollowingstageoperational,thenextchallengeisto retain trained staff and maintain the commitment of theparticipatingfactories.

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Textilefactoriesproducewithbetterenvironmentalandsocialconditions

100factoriesinprogramme48factoriesinprogramme


SupportforA16multi-stakeholderinitiativesinsustainablefashionsupplychains

Participationin2globalmultistakeholderinitiativesParticipationin3globalmultistakeholderinitiatives


Markettransformationthroughpartnershipwithfrontrunnerbrands/retailers

Collaborationwith7brands/retailersCollaborationwith12brands/retailers


Endorsementbylocalgovernmentsofsustainabletextileprogramme

OnelocalgovernmentsupportsprogrammeNolocalgovernmentsupportsourprogramme

0 32 0 33 China

Total global budget x €1,000 649 936 801


ProductgroupsTextiles

Opportunities and threats The strengths of the textiles programme are its integrationfromcottontogarment,itstrackrecordanditsreputationinthe sector – also with leading brands and retailers. The mainthreat is Dutch government donors’ declining interest infunding projects in India and China, because these emergingeconomies are growing so rapidly. However, the social andenvironmental conditions in factories still badly need to beimprovedinthesecountries.

Global partnerships Mainstreambrandsarenowshowinganinterestinsupportingsustainability initiatives. Solidaridad works with several suchbrandsandretailers,includingH&M,whichisactivelyinvolvedin developing wet-processing projects with dye houses inBangladesh and China. As well as jointly developing a video-based worker-training project in supplier factories in India,H&MisalsoactivelyinvolvedintheSumangalidebate.Coop-eration with Made-By creates the potential for connectionwith a number of mid-size European brands. However, mostmembersareasyetstillsmallbrands,whichlackthescopetotriggerlarge-scalefactoryimprovementprojects.

Donors PSO supported capacity-building in partner organizationsin three countries and ASN Bank supported several sustain-ability projects in the textile industry. With three brands thatsupplyDutchshops,theDutchMinistryofInfrastructureandEnvironment supported an environmental improvementproject affecting dyers and finishers. The Fair Labor Associa-tion has commissioned Solidaridad to carry out research ontheSumangalischemeinsouthernIndia.

Impacts Nijenrode University’s extensive impact assessment of Soli-daridad’s Fashion programme (2007-2010) was published inJanuary 2011. Although no further impact assessments weremade in 2011, characteristic feedback from Bangladesh wasprovidedbytheExecutiveDirectoroftheBitopiGroup,HasanMahmud: ‘Tarasima Apparels Limited is one of our factories.With your encouragement, we decided to take part in theCleaner Production Programme. This generated consider-ableinterestandgothugeworkdone.Wespent2millionBDT(approx. €18,350) and savings were 7million BDT (approx.€64,200).Thesavingsofnaturalresourcesareenormousandcannotbequantified.Thedataiscollectedbytheprogrammeinperiodicmonitoringvisits.’

India,sewingtextiles.

Photo:PaulBarbera


Gold

Certified gold jewellery now available

Solidaridad firmly established its gold programme in 2011. The launch of the Fairtrade and Fairmined (FTFM) standard in March made the UK the first country in which certified gold products were commercially available. As more countries follow, Solidaridad will measure the impact of certification in producer communities.

Programme setting Solidaridad is the only civil-society organization that workswith both industrial and small-scale partners in the privatesector at each point along the gold supply chain. It is nowcapitalisingonWesternjewellers’increasingawarenessofthewidespreadsocial injusticeand environmentaldamage linkedto the production of gold jewellery, such as bonded labour,unpaidchildlabourandmercurypoisoning.

FTFM: a real step towards fully traceable gold Solidaridad’s pursuit of a traceable, responsible supply ofgoldverifiedbythirdpartieswasboostedbythelaunchoftheFTFMstandard–animportantsteptowardsbetterconditionsfor vulnerable people in the chain. Together with initiativessuch as the Responsible Jewellery Council, it gives jewellersandothersinthesupplychainthepowertoactontheirgoodintentions by purchasing from certified gold miners. At themines,Solidaridadanditspartnerstrainminersinbetterenvi-ronmental,socialandproductiontechniques.

Benefiting artisanal and small-scale miners The global launch of the FTFM gold standard now makes itpossible for licensed jewellers to buy certified gold, greatlybenefiting artisanal and small-scale miners, mainly in SouthAmerica. New projects in Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania also set

thescenefortheexpansionofSolidaridad’sproducer-supportactivitiestosmall-scalegoldminersinAfrica.

Towards win-win in Peru In2010SolidaridadbegananinnovativepilotprojectinvolvingindustrialpartnersthatwasdesignedtobringbetterpracticestominersinPeru.Solidaridadworkswithcompaniesoncerti-fication to the Responsible Jewellery Council Code of Prac-tice, but also help them support small-scale miners workingnearby.Thiscanfostertrustandreduceconflictbetweenthetwo groups, and may give small-scale miners access to moreefficient, cleaner facilities for processing. Major Europeanjewellers have signed on to this pilot project and plan to buygoldproducedatcertifiedprojectsitesinthefuture.

Lessons learned Small-scale miners’ cash flow is limited, and Solidaridad soonfound that they preferred not to sell to international buyersbecause wire transfers were too slow. Solidaridad will nowfocus on developing closer relationships with the mininggroupstrainedinourprogramme,collectingsupplychaindata,identifyingdependablepartners–and,vitally,buildingtrust. One result that was not achieved in 2011 was securingfundingforFTFMtrainingformininggroupsinEastAfrica.Theaim was to start training in three countries: Kenya, Tanzania

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Producerdevelopmentandworkersupport

Small-scaleminerstrained:E:1000–R:2,656Workersthatbenefitfromindustrialminingpilotproject:E:600–R:300and1,000small-scaleminersnearbytheindustrialmine

4 910 410 470 Andes,WestAfrica

Civilsocietysupport Developedtoolkitsforsmall-scaleminers:E:2–R:0.Toolcontractsecuredfor2012E:increasecapacitiesofSolidaridadregionalcentresandlocalNGOstoworkontheGoldProgramme.R:5Solidaridadcentresand2NGOsimprovedcapacity

6 360 157 110 Andes,WestAfrica,SouthAmerica,EastandCentralAfrica,CentralAmerica

Sustainablemarketdevelopment

Establishpilotsupplychainsfromsmall-scaleminingcommunities(E:6–R:5)andindustrialmines(E:3–R:0)throughtoEuropeanjewellerybrands.

8 331 331 331 – Netherlands,Andes

Influencingpolicyanddialogue

E:workcloselywithstandards-settingbodiestoimprovestandards.R:continueddialoguewithFairtradeInternational,ResponsibleJewelryCouncilandOECD

3 60 60 60 – Netherlands

Total global budget x €1,000 1,661 958 971


ProductgroupsGold

and Uganda, in partnership with the Alliance for ResponsibleMining and the Fairtrade Foundation. Despite the delay, thecontractwasawardedandworkwillbegininearly2012.

Opportunities and threatsThegreatestopportunityliesinconsumers’ inherentinterestin gold. Recently, this may have been boosted by the mediafocus on the UK launch of FTFM gold and by attention to‘conflict minerals’ from the Great Lakes Region in Africa,which has highlighted the need for responsible sourcing.More opportunities may lie in recent legislation in the USAthat requires U.S. companies that buy gold to trace its origin.Clearly,thiswillaffectjewellers.Similarlegislationisnowbeingconsidered by the European Union. Meanwhile, steep rises inthegoldpricehavereduceddemand–andpossiblyjewellers’focusontheirgoldsupply.

Global partnerships In its primary markets –the UK, Denmark and the Nether-lands– Solidaridad works with several companies, includingjewellersandmanufacturers.Oneimportantstrategicpartneris Stephen Webster, a British jeweller whose high-profilejewellery brand played a leading role in the sector in 2011.AcceptingSolidaridad’sinvitationtovisitaminingcommunityin Peru that was in the process of certification, Stephen sawfirst-hand what Fairtrade and Fairmined means for minersand their families. ‘This is a difference we can pass on to ourcustomers,’hesaid–andbecamethelargestretailertopartic-ipate in the market launch in March 2011. Another importantpartner is Bibi van der Velden, a jewellery designer and artistin the Netherlands, who is also an ambassador for the Gold

Programme. Her visit to gold miners in Colombia associatedwith the Oro Verde (‘green gold’) programme was reportedextensivelyintheDutchmedia.

Donors In2011,theprivatefoundationAdessiumreneweditssupportinto 2013. A partnership with the U.S.-based organizationHumanity United resulted in a new focus area: modern-dayslavery. In two projects in Peru and Colombia Solidaridad istesting whether the FTFM standard can be used to counterthe worst labour practices. This overlaps with Solidaridad’sconcernaboutexploitationingoldmines.

ImpactTo develop a general methodology for impact assessment,Solidaridad initiated a baseline study for the FTFM standard.The researchers visited two producer groups that had justachieved certification: COTAPATA in Bolivia and Asocasan inColombia,aproducergroupwithintheOroVerdecommunityofminers.Thisproducedafirstsetofbaselineindicatorsandsomeimportantinsights:

− themostimportantmotivationforminerstojointheFTFMschemeistheexpectedincreaseinrevenues

− asmallmajoritybelievethatcertificationalsocontributestocommunitydevelopment

− trainingduringtheprecertificationprocessshouldpaymoreattentiontosocialissuessuchasgenderanddemocraticdecision-making.

Solidaridad will include baseline and impact assessments as astandardelementineveryFTFMproducer-supportproject.

Nicaragua,artisanalgoldmining.Aminerdigsfororewithasteelbar.InLaLibertad,Chontalesminersextractorefromopencastandundergroundmines,andcrushandmilltheoretoextractthegoldwithmercury.

Photo:SeanHaw

key


Soy

First RTRS certificates sold in 2011

The first transaction in the round table Renewable Soy (RTRS) certification system took place in June 2011. Since then we’ve seen more sales under this system. In the Netherlands retailers, traders, feed processors and NGOs have jointly announced their intention to work towards 100 % responsibly produced soy sourcing by 2015.

Key achievementsA key objective for 2011 was to convince companies to makeconcreteinvestmentsinresponsiblesoyand,duringtheyear,thefirstRTRStransactionswereconcluded.CommitmentstoRTRSsoyinanumberofcountriesincludingBelgium,Swedenand UK were published in 2011. And companies involved inthe Dutch animal production chain signed an agreement–together with Solidaridad– to collectively finance a step-wisetransitiontowards100%RTRSsoyin2015. In support of this ambition, IDH signed a five-year SFTFagreement to extend RTRS certification in South America.To support sustainable production in South America, Soli-daridad signed the Soy Fast Track Fund (SFTF) agreementwith the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), which will invest€6millioninBrazil,ParaguayandArgentina. In parallel, Solidaridad obtained a five-year upscaling fundfrom the Soy Producer Support Initiative SOYPSI, which isnow known as the farmers support programme. Five largecompanies now support Solidaridad soy programmes: Frie-slandCampina, CONO/Ben & Jerry’s, Keurslagers, ARLA andInterchicken. Around 27,000 small and mid-sized farmers inIndia, Brazil, Bolivia and China have been supported to adopttheRTRSstandard.InIndiamorethan25,000small-scalesoyfarmers have also increased their productivity with supportfromSolidaridad.

ChallengesWorldsoyproductionincreasesby7.5%eachyear.Theimpacton land use is considerable. More hectares planted with soyin South-American leads to destruction of precious forests,while heavy use of pesticides pollutes soil and groundwater.FarmersinChina,IndiaandAfricancountriessufferfromlowproductivity. Solidaridad supports the sector in using scarcelandinasmarterandmoresustainableway.

Opportunities and threatsMoving towards a mainstream sustainability solution is along up-hill battle, as the prospects of short-term profit-ability seduce the sector to invest beyond the limits ofsustainability. Although the RTRS is gradually becoming theundisputable framework for sustainable soy production on aglobal scale, competing opportunistic schemes are a seriousthreat. Various innovative biodiversity initiatives have startedin Brazil. These are supported by the International FinanceCorporations BACP and Overbrook. In Argentina Solidar-idad is working with farmers to explore the potential forreducing greenhouse gas emissions by producing RTRS/EURenewable Energy Directive (RED)-compliant biodieselwith the assistance of the Dutch development organizationAgentschapNL. However, public commitment by market players in Europehas been slowly to materialize and in 2011 only limited

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000


Numberofhaunderbettermanagement

E: 40,000R: 45,562

13 1,320 1,044 2,160 SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

VolumeofmovingtowardsRTRSsoy(tonnes/year)

E: 75,000R: 81,118

SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Numberofhouseholdstrained/benefittingfromsupportprogrammes

E: 26,000R: 28,283

SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Numberofcountrieswithsupportstructureestablished

E: 4R: 5

13 140 180 360 SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia

NumberofinternationalcompaniesengagedinSolidaridadprogrammes

E: 7R: 7 5 310 310 350 SouthAmerica,SouthandSouth

EastAsia,Netherlands

Numberofgovernmentalandnon-governmentalorganizationsinvolved

E: 2R: 3

4 100 110 140 SouthAmerica,China,SouthandSouthEastAsia


13 1,320 1,044 2,160


ProductgroupsSoy

numbers of RTRS certificates were purchased. The explana-tionforthisisthreefold:1)obstructionbylargecompaniesinBrazil2)alackofseriouscommitmentbymarketplayerswhofear a first mover disadvantage; and 3) competing schemesthatunderminethelegitimacyoftheRTRS.InAsiaandNorthAmerica there is still a way to go before RTRS becomes themainstreamstandardforsoyproduction. The situation in the years ahead looks promising withannouncements by key market players in the Netherlands oftheirintentiontosourceupto2milliontonsofcertifiedRTRSsoy by 2015 – starting with 500,000 tons in 2012 and addi-tionalcommitmentsinothercountries.ThismeansplentyofworkforSolidaridadintheyearsahead.

Lessons learned: finding a balanceThe RTRS business model is not yet convincing enough formainstream buyers. Farmers want to be paid for certifica-tion, whereas market players see certification as a baseline(a ‘license to operate’). Finding a balance here will continuetobedifficult,asallplayerswanttobesurethatRTRSisgivingthem an advantage. Focused pressure from civil society willremainthebestwaytogetthesectormoving.

New donors boost 2011 budgetStrategic partnerships were forged with Friesland Campina,ARLA, North Sea Group and Unilever and the main donorswere SFTF and the Schokland Fund. Annual expenditure

in South America was €647,000, while in China and Southand South East Asia it was €311,000. The global soy budgetplanned in November 2010 was only €749,000. However,additional sources of income were found. The SFTF IDHfund,theIFCBACPfund,andGIZ(China)boostedtheoverallbudgetfor2011to€958,000.

Impact Solidaridad is increasingly seen as a solid pragmatic partnerfor achieving sustainable soy solutions. Family farmersin Brazil and India –and to a lesser extent in Bolivia andChina– have been supported in improving production, whilecomplying with the principles and criteria of RTRS. In Indiathis has resulted in an increase in production with fewerinputs, thus reducing poverty. In Brazil the main impact hasbeenmorebalanceduseofinputs.Externalimpactstudiestoquantifythesetrendsareplannedin2012.Overallthetrendisfor the biggest brands and retailers on the globe to committhemselves to sustainability. Solidaridad is well placed todeliver highly relevant, on-the-spot services to stakeholdersthroughoutthesoyvaluechain.

Familyfarmershavebeensupportedinimprovingproductionandsavingthenaturalenvironment.

Photo:Solidaridad


Palmoil

Support smallholders gets off to a promising start

Thanks to Solidaridad’s track record and to contacts with main market players in the sector, new partnerships were developed and existing ones expanded. The involvement of new brands, plantation companies, donors and traders now enables Solidaridad to scale up the producer-support programme and train thousands of oil-palm smallholders worldwide in the years ahead.

Progress With strong global demand, palm-oil production hasdoubled every decade since 1970, so 80million tons may beconsumed by 2020. But despite palm oil’s great efficiencyin terms of vegetable-oil output per hectare and its highreturns per dollar invested, potential benefits often don’taccrue to the millions of smallholders and workers in thesector. By building supply-chain partnerships involving producers,traders, manufacturers and retailers, we are supporting newapproaches to technology transfer, organizational develop-ment, rural credit and benefit sharing. These innovationsare shared and disseminated through industry platformssuch as the global Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil(RSPO). Though the programme is relatively new and severalprojects started slowly, progress has been good on all conti-nents. One of the ten palm-oil projects –the ProducerSupport Initiative POPSI– has finished, five are ongoing, andfourarestartingup.Allinvolvetrainingandcapacitybuilding,whichbenefitedsome12,500households.

Building up expertise in West AfricaInLiberiaSolidaridadpromotedsustainablepalm-oilproduc-tionbysupportingthedevelopmentofanRSPOnationaliniti-ative.Asmallholderoutgrowertrainingcurriculumwasdevel-

oped for roll-out in Ghana and other West African countriesin 2012. To this end, RSPO has provided funds for includingtwoadditionalmillsintheprogrammeinGhana.

First supply chain project a successSolidaridad developed the first supply chain projects, linkingmajor brands and companies with palm-oil smallholdersworking on compliance with the RSPO. Johnson & Johnsonand CONO (supplier of cream to Unilever’s Ben & Jerry’s icecreambrand)supportedRSPOpre-certificationprogrammesinGhanaandMalaysia.ToensureaconnectionwiththeIndo-nesian centres of expertise in palm oil, a Memorandum ofUnderstanding was signed with the Indonesian Oil PalmResearchInstitute. Smallholder certification has developed more slowly thanexpected.Nosmallholderpalmoilfruitcertificateshavebeentraded yet. So far very few smallholder groups have beenable to comply with the RSPO standard, which is demanding.Solidaridad will invest both in making a certificate tradingplatformforsmallholdersoperationalin2012andinensuringthattheRSPOprinciplesandcriteriareviewplannedfor2012will make certification more accessible for smallholders,without undermining critical social and environmentalsafeguards.

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000



E: 60,000R: 48,000

6 270 222 1,200 CentralAmerica,SouthAmerica,WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia

VolumeofRSPOcrudepalmoil(tonnes/year)

E: 180,000R: 120,000

CentralAmerica,SouthAmerica,WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Numberofhouseholdstrained/benefittingfromsupportprogrammes

E: 10,000R: 12,465

CentralAmerica,SouthAmerica,WestAfrica,SouthandSouthEastAsia

Numberofcountrieswithsupportstructureestablished

E: 4R: 4 6 150 150 400 CentralAmerica,SouthAmerica,South

andSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

NumberofinternationalcompaniesengagedinSolidaridadprogrammesI

E: 7R: 7 6 120 120 270 SouthAmerica,SouthandSouthEast

Asia,China,Netherlands


E: 0R: 2

2 70 70 170 SouthandSouthEastAsia,Netherlands

Total global budget x €1,000 610 562 2,040

6 270 222 1,200


ProductgroupsPalmoil

Opportunities and threats With demand booming, the structurally higher prices ofpalm oil mean that investment in improving smallholderproductivitywillpayoffrapidly.However, increasingdemandfrom India and China means that Western buyers can be lessdemanding in terms of sustainability. Incentives for a moresustainable and pro-poor development of the sector may beprovidedbyclimate-relatedfinance.

Lessons learned Despite limited number of proposals for palm-oil projects,Solidaridadtookahands-onapproachtodevelopingtrainingand organizational development capacity in key regions.In 2012 Solidaridad West Africa will provide a resourceand training centre for public, private and NGO extension-ists. Partnerships with existing institutions in Asia and LatinAmericawillbefurtherdeveloped.

Global partnerships From the onset, Solidaridad’s palm-oil programme has beensupportedbyUnilever,theworld’sbiggestpalm-oilbuyer.LikeCONO(seeabove),Johnson&Johnsonarealsoparticipatingin smallholder training programmes. As emerging marketsalreadyconsume75%ofpalm-oilexports,topprioritywillbegiven to market development in countries such as China andIndia. This will involve partnership with RSPO, the WWF andleadingRSPOmembers.

DonorsFunding is provided not only by the Netherlands Ministryof Foreign Affairs through the DGIS Public-Private Partner-ship facility and the Dutch Embassy in Ghana food-securityprogramme, but also by RSPO and NORAD. Each euro ofpublic support is matched by at least one euro from theprivatesector.Contributionsarealsomadebyotherpalm-oilfunds:theDutchlottery-basedDOENfoundationandtheIFCBACPfund.

Impact While the programme is too new to quantify the impact ontargetgroups,thereisanecdotalevidencethatRSPOtrainingworks. This was certainly clear on a field visit to smallholderswhosupplyanRSPOpartnerplantationinSarawak,Malaysia.Herbicide application had dropped dramatically withoutnegatively affecting yields and lower input costs have posi-tively affected farmers’ revenues. Thanks to lower humanexposure to herbicides, less pollution, and more biodiver-sity in the plantation, positive health and environmentalimpacts also seem very likely. During the upscaling of thepalm-oil programme, a baseline assessment and monitoringprogramme will measure impacts over the period 2012-2015.

Brazil.Agropalma,apartnerinthemunicipalityofTailandiainthestateofPara,isapalmoilcompanyforindependentsuppliers.

Photo:PieterSijbrandij


Sugarcane

All lights green for success in 2012

In three years, the programme has achieved a lot: good people, systems and communications, and a much improved context. And success is infectious; in a process supported by Solidaridad, Renuka do Brasil demonstrated its commitment to sustainability in sugar cane and ethanol production by becoming the world’s second sugar mill to achieve Bonsucro certification.

Programme setting Despite overall growth in the sugar-cane sector, too manysmall-scale farmers lack the knowledge and inputs theyneed to increase their production – and too many cane-cutters still work under degrading conditions. To improvetheir performance and income, Solidaridad seeks toadvance the position of underprivileged cane-cutters andfarmers.

Collaboration brings greater opennessThough many projects had start-up problems, they didmoderately well as they moved into 2011, their second orthird year. Part of this was due to coaching by Solidaridadstaff in the project countries, who had also helped clarifythe requirements for compliance with the Bonsucrostandard. Solidaridad is trusted as a valuable partner by companies,governments and other stakeholders in the industry. It hascontributedstronglytotheprogressofBonsucrobyshapingits institutions, recruiting members, raising market aware-ness, doing pilot projects, organizing extension staff, and byhelpingtotrainauditors. By facilitating discussion between the various partners,Solidaridad is also helping to redefine relationships betweenall partners in the chain. One result is that millers and end-users are now more willing to discuss solutions. Eventually,

examples of best practice will be identified and disseminatedtoothers.Anotherresultisthatworkers’rightsarenowbackinthespotlight–wheretheybelong.

Children now at school in Santa CruzIn Santa Cruz Province, Bolivia, 483 farmers were awardeda certificate for eradicating child labour, forced labour anddiscrimination. In a programme to get children out of thefields and into schools, Solidaridad worked with local mills,farmers, the Bolivian foreign commerce institute IBCE andUNICEF. The agreement includes children whose parentsfollowtheharvestfromoneareatothenext.

Bringing SMS to southern AfricaIn Kasinthula, Malawi, 400 small-scale farmers received theSustainable Management System (SMS) training developedby Solidaridad in southern Africa (and also in India, wherea thousand farmers will soon get Bonsucro certification).Solidaridad is working towards bringing SMS to all of thecountriesinSouthernAfrica.

Lessons learnedThe high price of Brazilian ethanol has temporarily defeatedattemptswithourpartnerNorthSeaGrouptosetupasupplychain for the first Bonsucro-certified ethanol to Europe.Patience is still required – but if no action had been taken,

Budgets and results


Numberofprojects

Budget2011x€1,000

Realisedx€1,000

Budget2012x€1,000



E: 40,000 R: 44,300

8 903 641 2,003 SouthandSouthEastAsia,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,CentralAmerica,Netherlands

NumberoffarmerswhohavemovedtowardsBonsucrocompliance

E: 20,000 R: 17,454

SouthandSouthEastAsia,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,CentralAmerica,Netherlands

Numberofcountriesinwhichasupportstructureisestablished

E: 4 R: 5

5 116 82 242 SouthandSouthEastAsia,SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,CentralAmerica,Netherlands

NumberofinternationalcompaniesengagedinSolidaridadprogrammes

E: 6 R: 6 5 181 128 321 SouthandSouthEastAsia,

SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,CentralAmerica,Netherlands


E: 4 R: 4 4 90 64 210 SouthandSouthEastAsia,

SouthernAfrica,SouthAmerica,Netherlands

Total global budget x €1,000 1,290 915 2,776

8 903 641 2,003


ProductgroupsSugarcane

RenukadoBrasilwouldnothavereceivedBonsucrocertifica-tion.

Opportunities and threatsTwo shortages are the biggest challenge facing theprogramme right now: a shortage of tools such as SMS, andof partners who can provide quality services to small-scalesugar-cane farmers. Despite its own shortage of capacity,Solidaridad currently has to do much of the work itself. Ittherefore hopes that initiatives such as the Bonsucro GlobalProducer Support and Innovation Network will make itpossible to recruit international expertise. It is also clearthat Solidaridad needs to take a more hands-on approach toprogramme design. This will strengthen its role as an imple-menterandreduceitsactivitiesasadonor.

Global partnersSolidaridad works closely together with Bonsucro and itsmember companies to improve the sugar-cane industryaround the globe. One of these is WWF and there are clearlyvaluablesynergiesinthiscooperation.

Donors Co-financed by companies including Suiker Unie and Delicia,the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs enables Solidaridad torunsixproducer-supportprojectsreachingouttothousands

of farmers, and also to contribute actively to Bonsucro’sprogress towards its status as the world’s meeting place forthosewithaninterestinimprovingperformanceinthesugar-canesector.TheMinistryalsocontributesthroughtheGlobalSustainable Biomass Fund, which has achieved significantresultsinseveralareas.

Impacts Almost 17,500 sugar-cane farmers have received trainingand support in applying better management practices,allowing them to improve both their performance and theirincomes.

Brazil.PatienceiskeytosettingupasupplychainforthefirstBonsucro-certifiedethanoltoEurope.

Photo:PieterSijbrandij


Bio-basedeconomy,Aquaculture,Livestock

New programmes in fast growing sectors

Moving towards a bio-based economy

Solidaridad believes it’s essential to move away from aneconomybasedonfossilfuels.Coalandoilarefinitepollutingresources that are linked to conflicts around the globe. Theprice of oil is rising inexorably and the shift to tar sands andcoal-to-liquidwillmakeoilevenmorepolluting.What’smore,pollution and price increases affect the world’s poor dispro-portionally. Solidaridad believes that shifting to biologicalfeedstock for energy and materials can have the oppositeeffect. The purpose of the bio-based economy programmeis to find out how to increase access to energy for the poorand how farmers can profit from producing feedstock, whileimproving food security and protecting the natural environ-ment.

CooperationIn 2011 Solidaridad worked with GdF Suez on developinga supply chain for solid biomass from Mozambique, withAbiodes on setting up a local supply chain for more sustain-able charcoal for household use in Beira Mozambique, andwith North Sea Group and various milling companies to

promote certification of sugar-cane-based ethanol in Braziland soy-biodiesel production in Argentina. Solidaridadworked with feedstock round tables such as Bonsucro andRTRS (soy), participated in a network of Dutch NGOs thatinfluences biofuel policies and advised several bio-energyrelated companies and initiatives on sustainable feedstock,including SkyNRG (bio-jet fuel) and the Green Gold Label.Wealsosignedamanifestopromotingabio-basedeconomy,togetherwithotherNGOsandcommittedcompanies.

Integration into core programmesThree large projects funded by Agency NL –with co-fundingfrom GdF Suez and North Sea Group– will run until the endof 2012. In the coming years, bio-based-related projects willbeintegratedintothecorecommodityprogrammesinorderto maximize synergies. It’s unclear precisely what was spentontheprogrammein2011.TheSolidaridadNetherlandshasageneral‘agri’budgetandthereisoverlapbetweencommodityprogrammes and the bio-based programme, especially inrelationtosugarcane,soyandtheFairLaborStandardsAct.

Ensuring food security and improving incomes through sustainable aquaculture

Fish and other aquatic organisms produced in a controlledenvironment represent the fastest growing food-producingsector in the world with a value of US$98.4 billion. Aqua-culture provides 9million fish farmers with a livelihood,plus another 27million –mostly women– working in theprocessingindustry. The farmers are mainly smallholders (80%), working on atotal of around 1.5million hectares. As there are few optionsfor increasing wild fish stock, aquaculture is becoming moreintensive. This is causing huge environmental problems,including destruction of mangroves, the use of harmfulpathogens and antibiotics, and water pollution. Sustainableaquaculture is the only way to ensure food security withoutdamagingecologicalsystems.Thereisdemandfromretailerswho are aware of these facts for fish that are certified by theIDH-supportedAquacultureStewardshipCouncil(ASC). There are also social concerns such as poor labour prac-tices, occupational health and safety in the processingindustry and low incomes. What’s more, the trend towardshigh-cost,export-drivenspeciesmakesitimpossibleforlocalpeopletobuyfishatanaffordableprice. Since almost 86% of aquaculture is in Asia, supplies willcome mainly from that region, while the main markets arein Europe. Solidaridad mostly works with small-scale fish

farmers to develop sustainable solutions. The proposedprogramme will ensure that aquaculture does not harm theenvironment, ensures food security and generates sustain-ableincomes.

PartnersSolidaridad plans to work with CARE in Bangladesh and Busi-ness Watch in Indonesia. The programme will be gradu-ally extended to China –the world’s largest aquacultureproducer–andThailand.AninitialassessmentmadeinSouthWest Bangladesh shows how climate change is impactingaquaculture and how a lack of supply chain linkages andunsustainable agricultural practices are creating a viciouscircleoffoodinsecurity.Solidaridadintendstoalignitsaqua-cultureprogrammewiththeASC.

Next stepsA baseline scan will be made in Indonesia, China and India. InBangladesh, Solidaridad is working with CARE and the Neth-erlands Embassy to develop a major multi-year aquacultureprogramme, targeting both food security and integratedsustainable farming. A budget for this new programme stillneedstobeallocated.


Product groups

LivestockinUruguay.Thereisanenormouspotentialforreducingenvironmentalimpactsthroughimprovedmanagement.


Bio-basedeconomy,Aquaculture,Livestock

Balancing demand for livestock products with sustainability

The livestock industry provides employment or livelihoodsfor over 1.3 billion people throughout the world, while live-stock production uses most of the available agriculturalland. Although this industry meets a significant proportionof global protein requirements, the environmental impactscan be considerable. Improved management can reverseland degradation and increase productivity and efficiency,thus reducing environmental pressure while feeding morepeople.

Round-table relationshipsSolidaridad is an active member of the Global Round TableforSustainableBeef(GRSB)andhasdevelopedrelationshipswith a number of partners in Namibia, Brazil, Argentina andUruguay,aswellaswithothermarketplayers.Theserelation-ships will enable us to develop programmes in a number ofcountries –together with members of the round table– forthebenefitofproducersandtheenvironment.

FundingInitial funding from the farmers support programme will beaugmented by co-funding from our project partners. Weanticipate significant potential gains from carbon seques-tration and payment for environmental services related tosustainable management of livestock. The total budget –andamount spent on the programme– in 2011 was approxi-mately €70,000. In 2012 we will launch pilot projects in threecountries with GRSB partners, which are designed to lead tosubstantialimprovementsinlivestockmanagementsystems.


China

SouthAmerica

Andes

CentralAmerica

WestAfrica

SouthernAfrica

EastandCentralAfrica

SouthandSouthEastAsia

TheNetherlands

Regional development

Aninternationalnetworkorganization

Photo:KekeKeukelaar

AMarsemployeedemonstratesjournalistsproductionprocessesintheworld’sbiggestchocolatefactoryofMarsinVeghel,theNetherlands.ThejournalistsinformedtheDutchpublicaboutsustainablechocolateandcocoaaspartofthecampaignFor the love of chocolate.


SolidaridadNetwork

An international network organization

Working in global supply chains with a multitude of stakeholders requires representation in many parts of the world. This is what makes the Solidaridad Network so effective.

TheSolidaridadNetworkconsistsofnineregionaloffices.Thedirectors of these centres of expertise who form the policy-making body of the network are developing a global strategywith inputs from each region, while centres are responsiblefor implementing the strategy. The board of directors meetstwice a year and agrees targets, budgets, plans and goals forpartnerinvolvement.

Future plansTheeightofficesinLatinAmerica,AfricaandAsiawillconcen-trate on building sustainable supply chains and creatinglocal markets for sustainable products. Solidaridad Neth-erlands will concentrate on market development in Europeby offering companies practical ways to implement socialcorporateresponsibility.Thiscentrealsorunsfundraisingandpublicity campaigns to involve consumers and the businesscommunity in sustainable production and consumption, andtoraisetheprofileoftheworkofSolidaridadanditspartners.

GonzalolaCruzSolidaridadAndesLima,Peru

‘Thirteenmillionsmall-scaleminersworldwideareoftenunderpaidfortheirdangerouswork,sincemanyofthemoperateillegally.Solidaridadstartedcapacitybuildingprojectsforminers,focusingonsettinguplegalcooperatives,fairpricingandgreenerminingmethods.’

JeroenDouglasSolidaridadSouthAmericaBuenosAires,Argentina

‘SouthAmericahasthebiggestremainingforestonearth:theAmazon.Withalowpopulationdensityandabundantnaturalresources,theregionisessentialforfeedingthegrowingworldpopulation.Solidaridadpromotessmartandsustainablelanduseinordertobeabletofeedtheworldandpreservebiodiversity.’

MichaelynBaur(DirectorfromMay2012)SolidaridadCentralAmericaCiudadGuatemala,Guatemala

‘Coffeefarmerorganizationsareoftenweakandstruggletogainaccesstointernationalmarkets.Wesupportproducersbyprovidinghelpwithcertificationandbuildingsufficientcapacitysothattheycanexportcoffeethemselves.’

HansPerkSolidaridadWestAfricaAccra,Ghana

‘Poorfarmingmethodsexhaustthesoilandreducethequalityofcocoabeans.Solidaridadhelpsproducersmakethetransitiontohigherproductivityandbetterqualityfarmingpractices.Itturnssmall-scalefarmersintoagriculturalentrepreneurs.’


Honduras

Belize

Nicaragua

Peru

Bolivia

Mexico

Surinam

Brazil

BangladeshPakistan

Nigeria

MaliSenegal

Cameroon

DR Congo

Ethiopia

Vietnam

Indonesia

Sri Lanka

Malaysia

Ireland

Italy

Belgium

Denmark

Sweden

United Kingdom Germany

Ghana

India

Argentina

China

Netherlands

Europe

Switzerland

Ivory Coast

Guatemala

Colombia

Ecuador

Paraguay

Uruguay

Zambia

Namibia

Botswana

South Africa

Swaziland

Mozambique

Malawi

Tanzania

Kenya

Uganda

SolidaridadNetwork

KaruguMachariaSolidaridadEastAfricaNairobi,Kenya

‘Civilsocietyorganizationsplayanimportantroleinsustainableeconomicdevelopment.Theycancreateabalanceofpowerwithpoliticalandeconomicactorsinsociety.Solidaridadhelpsorganizationsofproducersandworkerstoinfluencethesocio-economicpoliciesofgovernmentsandcompaniesalike.’

AnnieSugrueSolidaridadSouthernAfricaJohannesburg,SouthAfrica

‘FarmersinSouthernAfricaareoftenpoorandlackaccesstobetterfarmingtechniquesandaffordablesourcesofenergy.Mixedagriculturalandforestrysystems,includingfoodandbiomass,canraisebothfoodandfuelproduction.Betterfoodsecurity,higherincomesandforestprotectiongohandinhand.’

ShatadruChattopadhayaySolidaridadSouthEastAsiaNewDelhi,India

‘Mostteafarmerslackaccesstoknowledgeaboutgoodfarmingtechniques.Ourteaexpertshavetrainedproducerorganizationsinbetterproductionmethodsandcertificationprocesses.In2011,morethan70,000teafarmingfamilieswerecertified.’

MartinMaSolidaridadChinaBeijing,China

‘AseamstressinanAsianclothingfactorycanworkupto90hoursaweekandstilllivebelowthepovertyline.SolidaridadChinaworkstoimprovelabourconditionsandlabourrights.Thegrowingdemandforethicalfashionishighlyconsistentwithourapproach.’NicoRoozenSolidaridadNetherlandsUtrecht,Netherlands

‘Manyofthecostsofagriculturalandindustrialproductionarenotreflectedinthepricesofproducts.Solidaridadaimstocreatenewsustainablemarketsinwhichthevalueofproductsandservicesisintegratedintotherealeconomy.Weencourageconsumersandcompaniestotaketheirresponsibilityforamoresustainableworld.’

ActiveinmarketdevelopmentandcommunicationActiveinproducerdevelopmentandbuildingcivilsociety


SouthAmerica

Solidaridad well positioned in sustainable solutions

Economic development in the region has peaked and the impact on land use has been huge. At the same time, as Asians adopt Western diets, South American farmers now feed not only consumers on the continent (275 million), but also 1 billion others. How can they expand in a smart sustainable way?

Macro developmentsA period of rapid growth in the region is clearly coming toan end. Economic development in Brazil has slowed andArgentinawillfollow,asmuchofitsexportsdependonBrazil.Pricesarefallingduetotheinternationaleconomiccrisis.Thepeak in soy prices, for instance, was reached early in 2011. It’sexpected that the boom, which created nearly full employ-ment, high levels of consumption and a radical reduction inpoverty,willcometoahaltfor2012. The impact of these developments is not yet visible in thesectorsinwhichSolidaridadoperates.Expansion,profession-alization, and efficiency are still the main drivers for imple-menting sustainability standards throughout the region. As aresult of demographic changes, there are now few marginal-izedpeasantfarmers.Thesehaveeithermovedintothecitiesor become highly entrepreneurial smallholders operating innichemarkets.

Dual approachSolidaridad South America works with large-scale andmarginal farmers. The latter mainly grow sugar cane, tea,cotton, palm oil and cacao. In these sectors ‘smart’ farmingremains a challenge, with substantial scope for improvingagricultural practices – achieving more with less. Theseproducers need access to innovation in order to stay

competitive and certification continues to be a valuabletool. In large-scale frontier farming –mainly soy and cattle,but also sugar cane and palm oil– key goals are slowingdown deforestation, changes in land use, carbon bundling,mitigating climate change and smart land use. Solidaridadis pioneering methods which allow farmers to move intosustainableareas,wheretheycanfarmwithoutcuttingdownrainforestordrivingoutindigenouspeople.

New self-assessment toolSolidaridad now offers farmers a ‘producer support andloyalty tool’, which allows them to assess their own sustain-ability without hiring expensive auditors. Once a suitablelevel is achieved, new potential sources of income becomeavailableviacarbonoffsetting.Forexample,thenewBrazilianforest code offers Solidaridad the opportunity to enter intoefficient management of protection areas and legal reservesincooperationwithagri-business.Thisshouldenablesmarterspatial planning, including regeneration of degraded lands, inexchange for the preservation of substantial areas with highconservation value, most of which are inhabited by indig-enous communities. A major challenge is how to use carboncreditstoavoidfurtherdestructionoftherainforest.

FarmersinParana,Brazilrotatesoywithpasturesforcattlegrazinginasustainablelandscapeprogramme,thusconservingpreciousrainforests.



Regionaldevelopment

SouthAmerica

Regional programmes− Analliancetomaketheteasectormoresustainable

includespartnerssuchasmedium-sizedteaproducersFundacionUniversidadDachary,theINTAresearchinstitute,theprovincialgovernment,UtzCertified,EthicalTeaPartnership,SaraLee,Unilever,andsmallerteabrands

− Togetherwithproducerassociations,SolidaridadhasstartedacocoacertificationinitiativeforUtzCertifiedandRainforestAlliancetogetherwithADM,CargillandNestlé.

− SolidaridadhasestablishedaBCIcomplianceprogrammeforlargercottonfarmersandsmallholders.

− ScopingstudieshavebeenmadeforgoldinArgentina,BrazilandSurinam.

− SoyproducersaresupplyingRTRSsoytothefood,feedandfuelsectors.

− Palmoilfarmersarecreatingaroundtable,inwhichlargebuyersfromthebiofuelsandfoodsectorinBrazilareinvolved.

− SolidaridadhashelpedvarioussugarmillstojointheBonsucrosupportprogramme.

− LivestockactivitiesareinUruguay.Partnersincluderangingcompaniesandslaughterhouses,INAC,RainforestAlliance,Zandbergen,AholdandMetro

− Asugar-caneethanolprogrammeinBrazilinvolvesUnicaandNorthSeaGroupandasoybeanoilbiodieselprogrammeinArgentinainvolvesINTA,LosGrobo,MolinosRiodelaPlata,RTRS,NorthSeaGroupandShell.

OrganizationSolidaridad South America has grown rapidly. In 2011, theorganization doubled in size and became more professional(ISO 9001:2008 is expected by the third quarter of 2012).Headquarters are in Buenos Aires, Argentina and there’s acountrydeskinSaoPaulo,Brazil.Numerousnewpartnershipswereformed,includingSAIPlatform,RainforestAlliance,ETP,ABRAPA, INTA and with companies such as Raizen, Arcor andLos Grobo. The idea is to make the rather non-tangible worldofsustainabilityintoatangiblebusinessasset. Argentina has two programme managers for soy, sugarcane, tea, and livestock. Argentina co-ordinates the imple-mentationoffieldprojectsinArgentina,Bolivia,ParaguayandUruguay.ThegoldscopingandfeasibilityplansforSurinamarealso coordinated from the Buenos Aires office, which hoststheSouthAmericachapteroftheSAIPlatform. TheBrazilofficehoststhecountrymanager,aswellascrop-specific programme managers. He is responsible for the IDHSoyFastTrackFund and for all other programmes in Brazil.Threeprogrammemanagersworkonsoy,sugarcane,cotton,livestock,palmoilandcacao. Thenextstepistodevelopregionalmarketsforsustainableproducts. Multinationals with corporate social responsibility(CSR) programmes are moving into emerging markets; largerlocalcompaniesarealsocommittingtoCSRconceptsfortheirproductsandmarketoutlets.SolidaridadSouthAmericahoststheSAIPlatform,whichcanhelpbringCSRtolocalmarkets.

Activities and budget

Sector Countries Projects Budget2011x€1.000

Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000

Mainactivities Mainpartners

Coffee Brazil,Peru 2 – 66 30 Scopingandfeasibilitystudy;training UtzCertified

Tea Argentina 1 210 176 137 Training,certificationsupport,accesstofinanceandmarketlinkage

UtzCertified,ETP,Unilever,Dachary,localproducers

Cocoa Brazil 2 117 29 17 Certificationsupportforsmallholders,Bahia

Traders,UtzCertified,RFA

Fruit Brazil,Argentina,Peru 3 – 66 50 Supplyspecialcitrusproducts Campina,CocaCola

Cotton Brazil 2 – – 255 Startchainofcustody Abrapa,BCI

Textiles Brazil 2 – – 100 Linkcottontolocaldemand Abrapa,C&A,Carrefour,Zara

Gold Surinam 1 9 7 – Scopingandfeasibilitystudy ARM,WWFSurinam,IAMGOLD,miningvillages

Soy Brazil,Argentina,Paraguay,Bolivia,India

15 700 830 1,583 CreatemainstreamsupplyofRTRSsoyandmarketlinkage

Palmoil Brazil 2 223 262 286 RSPOcertificationsupportforsmallholders

AgroPalma,RSPOmembers

Sugarcane Argentina,Bolivia,Paraguay,Malawi,India

4 528 419 632 Establishtri-nationalBonsucroroundtablesandimplementstandard

Proyungas,Guabira,MoisesBertoni,Bonsucromembers

Bio-basedeconomy

Brazil,Argentina 3 415 384 359 CreatesupplyofRTRSandBonsucrobiofuels,trainworkersandoutgrowers

RTRS,Bonsucro,LosGrobo,NorthSeaGroup,Shell,Unica

Livestock Brazil,Argentina,Uruguay

2 130 36 229 BuildnationalplatformsinBrazilandArgentina,studybest-in-classbeefUruguay

GTPS,GRSB,IPCVA,INAC,SAN,Zandbergen,Ahold

Other 5 274 265 294

Total regional budget 2,606 2,540 3,972


Andes

More than half of exports now in producers’ hands

Solidaridad Andes, together with sustainable fruit company Agrofair, pioneered the organic and fair-trade banana programme in Peru. After nine years of support for the sector, in 2011 producer organizations had achieved majority control of sustainable banana exports. They exported 52 % of a total of 5,338 containers (105,000 tons) of organic bananas.

Macro developmentsThe Andean region has grown fast in the last decade, espe-cially Peru, where GDP grew 73.2% between 2002 and 2010.InthesameperiodColombiagrew46.9%andEcuador45.9%.Althoughtheinternationalfinancialcrisisisslowingdownthespeed of growth, there are good prospects for continuedexpansionoflocaleconomies.Millionsofpeoplehavemovedout of poverty – in Peru from 54.8% in 2001 to 31.3% in 2010,and in a similar period in Ecuador from 49.0% to 37.1%, inColombia from 45.1% to 37.2%, and in Bolivia from 37% to26%. However, the region is experiencing increasing pres-sureonlimitednaturalresources.Thisisreflectedingrowingnumbers of informal or illegal small-scale miners, growingconflicts over land and water between new mining conces-sions and traditional farmers and herders, new land beingopened up in environmentally fragile areas, and continuingdeforestationandlanddegradation.

Regional network In2010,inresponsetogrowthinincomesandpovertyreduc-tion in Latin America, the Dutch government ended bilat-

eral development aid to the few remaining ‘preferential’countries in the region. Colombia is now considered to bean economy in transition, where traditional aid will be trans-formedintoeconomiccooperationbasedonmutualbilateralinterests.Onemainobjectiveunderthenewpolicyissustain-able production and trade involving cooperation betweencompanies in both countries. In 2011, the Dutch Embassy inBogota started negotiations for a Sustainable Trade Initia-tive, designed to increase the value of sustainable trade inColombian coffee, bananas and flowers over the next fouryears. Solidaridad is facilitating and supporting this initiative,which centres on organizing multi stakeholder platforms percommodity. The sugar-cane and palm-oil sectors are alsolikely to play important roles in bilateral business coopera-tionrelatedtotheuseofbiomassforgreentechnologiesandrenewableenergy.

Regional programmes MostofthepoorintheAndeanregionliveinruralareas.Thisis why agriculture is a main target sector for poverty reduc-tion.Smallholdingsarepredominantandsmallfarmersplayan

ProcessingofbananasatGrupoHualtacofacilities,NorthernPeru.

Photo:Solidaridad


Regionaldevelopment

Andes

extremelyimportantrole,bothinsupplyingfoodtothecitiesand in producing major export crops such as coffee, cocoa,vegetablesandfruit.Mostimportantly,small-scaleagricultureisthemainlivelihoodofthosesectionsoftheruralpopulationwhoarestillmiredinpoverty.SoSolidaridad’smainfocusistoworkwithsmallholders.Solidaridadfocusesonstrengtheningthesupplychainsthatprovidesmallholderswithmoreaddedvalue and greater control over trade. Encouraging small-holders to contribute to biodiversity, climate change andsustainable use of water resources is also an important aim.Solidaridad prioritises a number of key agricultural sectorsin the Andes region. In Colombia these are coffee, banana,flowers and palm oil, in Peru coffee, banana, cotton andcocoa,andinEcuadorcocoa,inresponsetogrowinginterestin Utz-certified cocoa in European markets. Cut flowers is anew sector that Solidaridad will start working on intensivelyin 2012, sharing the Netherlands’ traditional expertise in thisareawithgrowersinColombia.

Golden opportunity Another strategic choice is to work with small-scale miners.Most artisanal mining is informal and dedicated to goldextraction. In 2010 Solidaridad started providing support togold projects in Peru and Bolivia. Informal miners undergovery poor working conditions and high risks on a daily basis,especially in underground mines, where there are no safetystandards –for example, in relation to the use of explo-sives– and environmentally unacceptable practices, espe-cially involving the use of mercury. The settlements, where

artisanal miners live in precarious conditions, suffer fromovercrowdingandalackofbasicservicessuchaswater,elec-tricity, health and educational infrastructure. There are alsoproblems associated with alcohol consumption, nutritionaldeficiencies, human health, child labour and high levels ofviolence.Inthissector,Solidaridadfocusesondevelopingandadoptingresponsiblecodesofconductinthesmall-scalegoldmining sector, with the aim of improving the livelihoods ofminers as well as the social and environmental impact in thesurroundingvillages.Thesecodesgiveminersaddedbenefits,which allow them to trade Fairtrade and Fairmined gold andthuscounterthepracticesassociatedwithirresponsiblegoldextraction.

OrganizationSolidaridad Andes, whose regional office was established inPeru in 2004, is responsible for developing and managingprogrammes in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Thework, which is subdivided into programmes, projects andinternal services, directly employs the equivalent of 27 full-time posts, with 22 people on the payroll as permanentemployees, three people working on annual contracts asconsultantsandthreepeopleworkingpart-time.Thegrowthin personnel is due to an increase in the number and size ofprojects in recent years. It is expected that this growth willcontinueandthattheofficewillemploy35peopleby2015.ItisplannedtoachieveISO90001certificationin2013.


Productgroup Countries Projects Budget2011x€1.000

Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Coffee Colombia,Peru

7 699 551 546 Trainingoftechniciansandlocalpromoters,technicalassistanceforstaff,publicationofguides,e-learningcourses,supportforlocalplatforms

NationalFederationofCoffeeGrowers,AssociationsofCoffeeGrowers,ExportCompanies,LocalAuthorities,CENICAFE,FLO,UtzCertified,RainforestAlliance

Cocoa Ecuador 1 101 44 61 Trainingandtechnicaladviceforproducers,extensionworkersandstaffofcompanies,assessments

TRASMAR,Nestle,Albrecht&Dill,GIZ,cocoaproducers

Fruit Colombia,Peru

2 111 73 306 Trainingoftechniciansandlocalpromoters,technicaladviceforstaff,publicationofguides,supportforlocalplatform

CENBANOR,GrupoHualltacocompany,AssociationsofBananaGrowers,FLO,Agrofair,localNGOs(CEPESER,CEDEPAS),Oikos

Cotton Peru 1 36 36 0 Technicalassistanceforcottonproducer,strategicplanningandmanagementofOroBlancocottoncompany

OroBlancocompany,organiccottonproducers,TextileExchange,MinistryofAgriculture

Gold Peru,Bolivia 4 143 143 174 Supportforminers’organizations,trainingofauthoritiesandstaffofminingorganizations,studies,technicaladviceforartisanalminers,policyinfluence

LocalNGOs(RedSocial,CumbredelSajama),miners’organizations(AURELSA,MACDESA,SONAMIPE,etc.),traders,localgovernments,

Other:Flowers Colombia 1 – – 166 Technicalsecretariatforthenationalplatformforsustainableflowers

ASOCOLFLORES,CENIFLORES,DutchEmbassy

Total regional budget 1090 847 1,252


CentralAmerica

Solidaridad makes progress against huge odds

Central America continues to struggle with drugs-related violence and organized crime. Governments tend to be corrupt and some countries are virtually failed states. Nevertheless Solidaridad has been able to further strengthen the coffee sector and start to persuade the ‘first movers’ in the sugar and palm sectors to work towards sustainability.

Regional programmesSolidaridad Central America is currently working onimproving the sustainability of three sectors; coffee, sugarand palm oil. The coffee programme –the longest lastingprogramme– focuses on mainstreaming certified CentralAmerican coffees by providing direct technical support toabout 8,000 producers and giving support to others indi-rectly by strengthening the capacities of national coffeeboardsandorganizationsaswellasexporters. ForthepasttwoyearsSolidaridadhasbeenworkinginthesugar-cane and palm-oil sectors, which face complex situa-tionssuchasconflictsoverlandandwaterandworkerexploi-tation. Another problem that needs to be addressed is thatrecent investigations have shown that sugar-cane cutters

in the Central American region suffer from serious chronickidney failure – probably due to dehydration and the use ofdangerous pesticides such as 2-4D. Three pilot projects havebeen set up with WWF in Honduras and Belize to improvethesustainabilityofthesugar-caneandpalm-oilsectors.Thepressure of the market on companies to get Bonsucro andRSPOcertificationhelpstoaddresstheseproblems,becauseuntiltheseproblemsaresolvednorealprogresscanbemadeinthesesectors. In Nicaragua a scoping study was carried out in the miningcommunityofLaLibertadwherealargegoldminingcompanyis operating and artisanal mining activities are carried out.Mercury contamination is a serious thread for the entirecommunity.Thepossibilitiesoffuturecollaborationonfuture

AminerwalksthroughanarrowopeningintoatunnelinagoldmineinLaLibertad,Chontales,Nicaragua.Thetemperatureundergoundishighandtheairisoftenpoor.SolidaridadislookingforfundstostartagoldprogrammeinNicaragua.

Photo:SeanHaw

keye


CentralAmericaRegionaldevelopm

ent

projects, both with the large mine and with the artisanalminingcommunities,lookpromising.

Main issuesAccording to the Irish Aid final programme evaluation salesof certified coffees (Fairtrade and Utz Certified combined)from the coffee programme countries virtually trebled overthelastfiveyears,resultinginanadditionalannual incomeof$4.9milliontoproducersoverandaboveworldprices. There has also been a boost to incomes through produc-tivityimprovements,e.g.a30%increaseinyieldsinHonduras,where producers have been supported for the longest time.TheCentralAmericancoffeeprogrammewas‘swimmingwiththetide’inthesensethatworldcoffeepriceswerefavourable,but this could equally have undermined certification effortsas prices were so good on conventional markets that therewaslessincentivetoseekspecialisedmarkets. The sugar-cane and palm-oil sectors face serious landownership and labour-related challenges that need to beaddressed urgently and several enterprises face violentconfrontations with surrounding communities over land,health and labour issues. Some enterprises are willing tonegotiate with the communities, partly because of the pres-sure that buyers –and through them consumers– put onthem to introduce more sustainable business practices. Soli-daridadassiststheminimplementingthesepractices.

Reaching mainstream consumersDue to low levels of production because of small farm sizesandpoorproductivity,premiumpricesalonearenotenoughto reduce poverty. Solidaridad works to improve produc-tivity by introducing better agricultural practices. Producersare also trained in small business skills and given access tomarkets through certification schemes. Around 30% ofcoffee producers are now certified and, fair/ethical coffee isno longer a niche product; it’s now reaching the mainstreammarket. Tosellintomainstreammarkets,newstrategiessuchasthatpursued by PROCASO (a ‘train the trainer’ model involvingfarmers and exporters) in Honduras need to be adoptedto make the whole chain more sustainable. Coffee produc-tion by the 6,000 farmers and smallholders in this uniqueprogrammehasincreasedby35%overthelastthreeyears.

Important existing and potential partnerships − Inthecoffeesectorawiderangeofpartnershipshave

beendevelopedovertheyears;theseincludenationalcoffeeboards,ministriesofagricultureandeconomics,otherdevelopmentorganizations(SNV,certificationbodies,standardsetters,etc.)aswellasproducerorganizationsandprivateplantations.

− AnumberofpalmproducerswhoareinterestedinRSPOcertificationhavecontactedSolidaridadCentralAmerica.

− TheSustainableCommodityAssistanceNetwork(SCAN)/McDonaldsstartedaprojectinGuatemala,withSolidaridadasoneoftheimplementingpartners.

− LeafandSolidaridadaredevelopinganartisanalminingprogrammeinNicaragua.

− TheminingcompanyB2GoldcouldbeapotentialpartnerforsustainablemininginNicaragua.

− TheAssociacióndeReservasNaturalesPrivadas,whichsupportsprivateproducerswhoownandprotectnaturereserves,isanewpartner.

− TheInstituteforClimateChangeResearchinGuatemalaisinterestedinworkingwithSolidaridadonenvironmentalissuesinthesugar-canesectorinGuatemala.

− AstrategicpartnershipwithWWFandSNVforsugar-caneandpalm-oilprojectsiscontinuing.ThoseprojectsaresupportedbybuyerssuchasHenkel,UnileverandCoca-Cola.

Organizational developmentsTwoyearsagotheregionalofficeintroducedaProjectAdmin-istration System to manage programmes online. This onlinepassword-protected system, which works quite well, wassimplifiedandadaptedin2011(itnowincludesindicatorsandnetwork relationships). All staff have been trained in the useof the system, which permits real-time updating of project-relatedinformation.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Coffee Honduras,Guatemala,Mexico,Nicaragua

6 510 403 250 Farmersupportforsustainableproductionofhigherqualitycoffeeandmarketing

IrishAid,Argidius,Cordaid,ZustersvanOirschot,MFS

Others(cultureandgender)

Guatemala – 103 103 50 Trainingoflocalleaders ZustersvanOirschot

Total regional budget 613 506 300


WestAfrica

Solidaridad West Africa comes of age

The most important development for Solidaridad West Africa in 2011 was establishing a strong regional presence and fully operational offices in Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon and Ivory Coast. Each country is at a different stage of development, but all are managed from the regional office in Accra.

Macro developmentsThewarinIvoryCoastearlyin2011stalledthedevelopmentofthepreviouslythrivingcocoaprogrammethere.Itwasimpos-sibletogetintothefieldandtherewasanEUbanonexports.This also explains why many companies have switched theirattention to Ghana. The political and policy environmentremainschallenging,bothinIvoryCoastandinGhana,duetoupcomingelections,especiallyforthecottonsectorinwhichSolidaridad programmes have recently become operational.In the region as a whole, there is growing interest by foreigninvestors, particularly those from Indonesia and Brazil, inlarge-scaleexpansionplansforoil-palmcultivation(especiallyin Liberia and Sierra Leone) and sugar cane in Sierra Leoneand Mali. Solidaridad West Africa is monitoring unrest in theNorthern part of Nigeria, but it is as yet unclear how this willaffectSolidaridad’swork.

Regional networkThe regional network includes Utz Certified, WWF, Conser-vation Alliance, Zamacom and Barry Callebaut. New partner-ships were established with Armajaro (Ghana, Ivory Coastand Nigeria) ADM in Nigeria, Cargill in Ivory Coast, Ecom inIvory Coast and Nigeria, and Mars in Ivory Coast. A partner-ship with WWF Ghana involved developing a programme inone of the national parks with timber concessions based oncertified cocoa combined with FSC certification. Highlightsin2011wereincreasinginterestfromthebusinesscommunityin working with Solidaridad and funding projects, an agree-ment with the Dutch government to develop an oil-palmprogrammeandexpansionoftheportfoliotoincludecotton.Solidaridad reinforced its position in the cocoa sector inGhana, Nigeria and Cameroon, as well as its relationship withthe Sustainable Tree Crops Programme of the International

VincentManufromSolidaridadWestAfricaexplainstococoafarmerswhathappenswiththeirproduceonceithaslefttheirfarms.ThispicturewastakenforFor the love of chocolate,aDutchcampaignbyMars,UtzCertifiedandSolidaridad.

Photo:KekeKeukelaar


WestAfricaRegionaldevelopm

ent

Institute for Tropical Agriculture, which focused on trainingfarmersincertificationandwaystoimproveproductivity.

Regional programmesAgriculture is the main livelihood in the region. Solidaridadparticipates in cocoa, oil palm, gold, cotton, fruit and vege-tableprogrammes,becausethesecommoditiesareproducedin large quantities, benefiting numerous producers, theirfamilies and their communities. Producers learn to employbetter farming practices, which improve their livelihoodswhile benefiting the environment. Solidaridad West Africaorganizes workshops, demonstrations and ‘train the trainer’courses at Farmer Field Schools, presenting sustainability asa business opportunity which reduces costs while improvingsupplychainsecurity.There’salsoafocusonhealthandsafetyinthefieldaswellassocialissuessuchasavoidingchildlabour.In 2011 courses included Farmer training, Utz Certification,GenderAwareness,FarmerGroupDevelopmentandtraininginGoodAgriculturalPractices.Apartnershipwasestablishedin Nigeria with SOCODEVI, a Canadian NGO, to strengthenfarmer-based organizations and develop relationships withstakeholders, including the Ministry of Agriculture and localgovernmentrepresentatives. Solidaridadworkswiththemainoilpalmproducingorgani-zations in Ghana and Liberia and formed a fruit partnershipwith the Market Oriented Agriculture Programme of theGerman development cooperation organization GIZ andSwiss fair-trade importers HPW. Fruit outgrowers receiveadvice on certification and reducing their carbon footprintthrough smarter use of fertiliser, minimising erosion, andimprovingpackagingdensityintransport. ThreeminingcommunitiesinGhanahavebeenselectedtopilotagoldprogramme,withfair-tradecertificationexpectedin 2012. A proposal made to the Dutch postcode lottery forthree-year funding was accepted early in 2012. The projectportfolio was expanded to include cotton in the North ofGhana and a partnership was established with Armajaro

Cotton Trading Ghana and the Safana Agriculture ResearchInstitute. Sources of funding include contracts with compa-nies and the Dutch Embassy. Proposals were also made tothe Ghana-based Business Development Services Fund forfinancein2012.

Organizational developmentSolidaridad West Africa, which was established in 2010, hasgrown rapidly with new projects, new countries and newstaff. The offices in Cameroon and Nigeria are now fullyoperational and there are good relationships with govern-ment, civil society and the business community, especially inGhana, where Solidaridad is seen by government ministriesas a serious partner. A quality manual and training materialsfor ISO 9001 certification in the first half of 2012 have beenprepared. A Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation (PME)system is now fully operational and dedicated PME staffhave carried out a mid-term evaluation and coordinatedbaseline studies. Exchange visits have been organized andstaff members from the various countries in the region havereceived training. Solidaridad West Africa has diversified itsfunding base and improved its communication, includingcontributionstoradio,televisionandnewspaperarticles.Soli-daridad representatives also attended several national andinternational conferences, the most successful of which wastheNationalStakeholderConferenceinGhana.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Cocoa Ghana,IvoryCoast,Nigeria,Cameroon

13 2,269 1,764 2,949 Farmertraining,UtzCertification,genderawareness,farmergroupdevelopment,GAPtraining,networking

UtzCertified,WWF,ConservationAlliance,Zamacom,Ecom,BarryCallebaut,Armajaro,ADM

Cotton Ghana 105 23 106 Scopingstudies Armajaro

Fruit Ghana 5 100 102 – Eco-Ttrials,organiccertification,GAPtraining,

GIZ

Vegetables Ghana 1 19 20 – GAPtraining GIZ

Gold Ghana 1 53 56 380 Trainingofminers,FTFMcertification

FT

Palmoil Ghana 1 106 46 374 Trainingoffarmers,RSPOcertification

RSPO,GOPDC



SouthernAfrica

Improving market access in Southern Africa

In the past year a further 1800 smallholders in the Sofala province of Mozambique engaged in a unique agro-forestry programme, which will give a total of over 2500 farmers the potential to access both local and international biomass markets, while enabling them to increase food crop yields.

Macro developmentsSolidaridad Southern Africa is concerned about continuingdeforestation in the region, due to clearing both for subsist-ence farming and for securing household energy suppliesthroughtraditionalcharcoalmaking.Theseactivitiesincreaselocal air pollution and contribute to global greenhouse gasemissions. Food security is a crucial issue in the region.In large areas of Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and even inMalawi, people experienced food insecurity in 2011 due toclimate effects (both droughts and floods). In uncertainclimatic conditions, livestock production, which has alwaysbeenimportanttotheregion,isaflexibleoptionforfarmers.This is why Solidaridad has launched a sustainable livestockprogramme.

Regional networkThe Solidaridad biomass programme in Mozambique isfunded by the EU and implemented by Abiodes. This localNGO focuses on biodiversity and sustainable developmentand helps farmers improve productivity, reduce environ-mental impact and strengthen market linkages, while devel-oping a sustainable supply chain for bioenergy. With fundingfrom Agentschap NL, in partnership with Electrabel, Soli-daridad carried out a study on biomass in the region, whichshowed that there is sufficient supply for some sustainableexpansion. In 2011 the Flemish International CooperationAgency VAIS funded projects related to rooibos in SouthAfrica and black tea in Mozambique. Together SolidaridadEast and Central and Southern Africa worked on a black teaprogram and on rooibos with South African partners. In thelivestock sector, the Namibian MeatCo Foundation partici-

HealthandsecuritysignsusedfortrainingpurposesattherooibosplantationYsterfonteinSouthAfrica.CertifiedrooibosisdestinedprimarilyfortheEuropeanmarket.

Photo:Solidaridad


SouthernAfricaRegionaldevelopm

ent

pated in projects in Namibia and market partners have beenfound in Europe who are interested in Solidaridad’s sustain-ablebeefconcept.SolidaridadpartnerswithConcernWorld-wideforsugar-caneworkinMalawi.

Regional programmesSolidaridad promotes agro-forestry in Mozambique, inte-gratingthesupplyoffood,energyandcashcropproduction.The main focus is on indigenous trees and perennials, withsomeenergycropssuchasbamboo.Inthiswayfoodsecurityisprotected,asfarmerscontinuetoproducefoodfromtheirgardens. The plan is to produce biomass on 250 hectaresin partnership with 2500 smallholders and to process it bypyrolysis. Other technologies such as torrefaction are beingexplored. The biomass will initially be used locally as a moresustainable source of charcoal, and may later be exported ifvolumes are sufficient for co-firing in power stations. So far100 hectares have been planted and 2,598 smallholders havebeen introduced to the programme. Supplies of indigenousbamboo have been identified locally. Local farmer organiza-tions have established 18 nurseries, an association of small-holders has been set up, and a partnership agreement witha commercial partner is being negotiated. At the same time,extensionworkersarehelping5,000farmerstoimprovefoodcropyields. A sustainable sugar-cane programme in Malawi and Swazi-land was expanded in 2011, reaching 500 farmers and 300workers, who together produced 200,000 tonnes of sugaron 3,500 hectares. In Malawi good progress was made,despitedisputesoverlandallocation.Outgrowerswereintro-duced to a sustainable management system and the projectpartners are helping them set up an association which canrepresent them at the national level. In Swaziland solid linkswereestablishedwiththeSwazilandSugarAssociation(SSA).Solidaridad, which was represented at Swaziland’s annualSugar Conference, presented a paper on Better Manage-ment Practices and Sustainable Management Systems in

the Sugar Sector: Implications for Smallholder Sugar cane Growers. SouthAfricaistheonlycountryintheworldthatproducesrooibos. Farmers and workers benefited from training insustainableproductionprovidedbySolidaridadin2011.Thereare now Good Inside certified commercial producers andthe first smallholder cooperatives will be certified early in2012.CertifiedrooibosisdestinedprimarilyfortheEuropeanmarket. AVAIS-fundedprojectforproducersofblackteainMozam-biquewasoriginallyexpectedtocoverZimbabweaswell,but,duetoeconomicandpoliticalconstraints,thishasnotprovedpossible.InMozambiqueworkhasprogressedwell. Over the past year Solidaridad has been building up rela-tionships with livestock partners in the region, particularly inNamibia – the main beef exporting nation. A joint approachhasbeendevelopedwithMeatCo–thelargestexporter–andthiswillbeexpandedin2012.Unfortunately,EuropeanexportconstraintshavepreventedexpansionintoBotswana.

Organizational developmentsUp to the end of 2011 the Solidaridad Southern Africa wasa fairly loose network, covering the region from an office inBotswana. It relied mainly on external expertise, such as thatofSolidaridadEastAfricainrelationtoblackteaandconsult-ants when it came to rooibos. Solidaridad Southern Africashared its in-house sugar-cane expertise with internationalcolleagues in the Solidaridad Network and the internationallivestock programme is led from Southern Africa. Early in2012 a head office will be established in Johannesburg andadditional staff will be hired to create the capacity to focusmoreonfoodcrops,whilecontinuingtodevelopsustainableagroforestrythroughouttheregion.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Tea Mozambique,SouthAfrica

1 149 143 202 Trainingfarmersinsustainableteaproductionandmanagement,certificationformarketaccess

SandraKrugerAssociates,SolidaridadEastAfrica

Sugarcane Malawi,Swaziland,Mozambique,SouthAfrica

3 215 110 142 Trainingfarmersinsustainablesugar-canemanagementsystems

EU,Concern,Agricane,

Bio-basedeconomy

Mozambique 2 136 93 186 Workingwithsmallholdersonbiomassandfoodproduction(agrofroestry),establishingbiomassprocessing(pyrolysis)

EU,Abiodes

Livestock Namibia 1 51 56 116 Assistingwiththedesignofsmallholdercattleprogramme

MeatCo



EastandCentralAfrica

Creating visibility and attracting more partners

Solidaridad supports Public Private Partnerships in the region and lobbies for an enabling governmental climate. A key aim is to strengthen the position of marginalized people by creating and strengthening farmers’ associations. Working with partners in the region, in particular providing training, creates a multiplier effect and thus increases the impact of programmes.

Macro developmentsKenyan involvement in the Somalia war diverts resourcesfrom agricultural programmes, while the independence ofSouth Sudan creates opportunities for new projects. ErraticgovernmentpoliciesinTanzaniaarediscouraginginvestmentinexpensivecoffee-beanwashingstations,whichwereinitiallyauthorized and then suspended. Such government policiesmake investors shy away, due to high risks and the lack of aclear legislative framework for land policy, property owner-ship and investment. The personal interests of key tradersare, for example, creating artificial shortages that drive upprices. What’s more, special environmental and biodiversity-rich areas are regularly seized by some politicians for timberharvesting or slash-and-burn cultivation, which affects watercatchment areas and has a negative impact on the environ-ment.

Regional networkIn 2011 Solidaridad East and Central Africa strengthenedits working relationships with various stakeholders in theregion (producers, traders, government institutions, NGOsand private companies) and expanded its regional fundingbase. The main partnerships are with producers directly ortheirmanagementagentssuchastheOromiainEthiopia,theBukonzo and Kibinge farmers cooperatives in Uganda, theKagera Cooperative Union in Tanzania, and over 10 Coopera-tiveSocietiesinKenyapartneringwithEcom,Volcafe,Arman-jaro, EDE and the World Bank. Solidaridad also works withfive tea factories on quality improvement and certificationtogetherwiththeKenyaTeaDevelopmentAgency(KTDA). In terms of Civil Society Organizations there is a jointgender project with the Swedish Development Agency anda joint horticulture project with SNV and HIVOS, in whichSolidaridad takes the lead. Commercial links were estab-

EastAfricanTeaTradersAssociationinternationalconferenceinMombasa.Mr.Kibaki,presidentofKenya,visitstheSolidaridadbooth.

Photo:Solidaridad


EastAfricaRegionaldevelopm

ent

lishedwiththecoffeeandteacompaniesArmanjaro,Volcafe,Ecom,Neumann,LouisDreyfus,KTDA,theTeaAssociationofMalawi(TAMAL),EasternProduceMalawi,PlantationGeneralMalawiandtheRegionalEastAfricanTeaTradersAssociation(EATTA). Links with government ministries included supportingthe Inter-Africa Coffee Organization (IACO) conference,Coffee Boards and government-sponsored National Farmeropen days. Solidaridad participated in national, regional andinternational forums and took the lead in co-funding or/andorganizing sector-related symposia, inviting prospectivepartners, funders and other influential people. In the futurethe intention is to be affiliated or appointed as members ofvariousorganizations’steeringcommitteesandtogetfurtherinvolvedinco-foundingsector-relatedprojects. New important partnerships were forged with the DutchEmbassy, SNV, Hivos, Wood Family Trust, Kenya CoffeeCooperative Exporters, Kofinaf, Biosustain –a company inTanzaniathatworkswithcottonsmallholders–andwithlocalbankssuchasEquityBank,CooperativeBankofKenya,KenyaCommercial Bank, who provide finance to producers in theregion. All of these initiatives are geared towards improvingthelivelihoodsofsmallholdersthroughpartnershipsbetweenpublicandprivatepartnersinacommodity-basedvaluechainapproach.

Regional programmesSolidaridad East and Central Africa has coffee, tea, cotton,fruit and vegetable and gold programmes, because thesesectors positively impact large numbers of people withinthe region. Programmes supported by Irish Aid, have ledto Utz Certified, Fairtrade and Organic coffee certificationprogrammes in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Kenya. Solidar-idad works with trading partners such as Ecom, Volcafe, theNeumannCoffeeGroupandArmajaroaswellaswithfarmers’organizationssuchasOromia,Sidama,YirgachefeinEthiopia,

KibingeinUganda,KageraCooperativeUnioninTanzania,andthe Kakuyuni, Rungeto and Tekangu cooperatives in Kenya.These projects strengthen the sustainable production ofhigher quality products which can be sold for better pricesin local and export markets. If production is carried out ina more professional way, this results in better incomes forproducers,leadingtoimprovedstandardsofliving,theestab-lishment of a sustainable production and marketing system,better conservation of the environment, and improvedsocial standards. The same goes for other commodities. Inparticular, the Dutch Embassy in Nairobi is funding horticul-turalprogrammesforfruitandvegetablesaspartofitsaimtoincreasediversityandfoodsecurity.

Organizational developmentsThevisibilityofSolidaridadintheregionhasgrown.Moreandmore organizations are approaching Solidardad to discusspossible areas of cooperation. The most important aspect in2011wasthefurtherprofessionalizationoftheoffice,includinga quality policy geared to ISO 9001-2008 certification in thefirst half of 2012. Management worked hard on an improvedfinancialstrategy,creatingamorediverseandbroaderfinan-cial base. Solidaridad expanded its scope, including activitiesinnewcommoditiessuchasfruitsandvegetables,cottonandgold,alongsidethecurrentstrongprogrammesforcoffeeandtea. This expansion went hand in hand with the engagementof new staff in the central office in Nairobi as well as in othercountriesintheregion,reachingatotalofeleven.SolidaridadEastandCentralAfricaemployedacountryrepresentativeinUganda,aRegionalCoffeeManagerstationedinNairobiandapart-time office assistant to cater for the increasing numberof activities in the region. Solidaridad is now the partner ofchoiceformanyotherorganizations,therearecountryrepre-sentatives in Uganda and Ethiopia and, due to the volume ofwork in Ethiopia, an additional full-time person is employedtheretofocusonfairtrade.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Coffee Uganda,Ethiopia,Kenya,Tanzania,DRCongo

43 1,239 796 1,295 GAPtrainingandcertificationsupport,NGOmanagementtrainingandmanagementinformationsystems,gendertraining,coolclimatetool

UtzCertified,ECOM,CMS,SMS,Tropical,CoffeeBoard,Sidama,Yirgachaffe,Oromia,CaféAfrica,FLO,Progreso,RootCapital,IrishAid

Tea Malawi,Kenya,Mozambique

15 165 71 154 GAPtrainingandcertificationsupport,NGOmanagementtraining,gendertraining

KTDA,UtzCertified,DEfoundation,EasternProduce,RainForestAlliance,IDH

Fruit Kenya 1 – 41 1,460 Developingprogrammeforimprovingefficiencyofthehorticulturesectorandimprovingfoodsecurity

NetherlandsEmbassy;FPEAK;TropicalFresh,FairFields,SNV,HIVOS

Cotton Tanzania 2 – 8 70 Scopingstudies,technicalassistance

Biosustain,RabobankFoundation

Gold Tanzania,Uganda,Kenya

3 – 79 – Programmedevelopmentandscopingstudies

MinistryofMines,ARM,FLO

Total regional budget 1,404 917 2,979


SouthandSouthEastAsia

Indonesian tea standard launched

In 2011 Solidaridad South and South East Asia pioneered the development of sustainability standards, taking a bottom-up national approach. An important standard – LESTARI – was developed and launched in Indonesia this year, while in India there were pilot projects in partnership with Hindustan Unilever to create a national sustainability standard for the domestic tea market.

Macro developments India is on its way to becoming the world’s most populousnation by 2025. The Asian region is home to a large numberof people who are experiencing a rapid increase in incomeandfar-reachingchangesinlifestyle.Butit’salsohometotheworld’slargestgroupofpoorpeople.Thissituationisleadingto a debate on how to balance the needs of today with theirimpact on the global environment. Fortunately, a consensusisemerging,aswasevidentattheUNConferenceonClimateChange in Durban, where a timeframe for sustainable devel-opment was set. Several large companies have committedto procure and sell socially and environmentally sustain-able products in Asia by 2020. Greater cooperation betweencivil society, government and business is crucial for sustain-able production and consumption in the region. Solidaridad

engages partners, exploring, for example, what can be donetomaketeagrowingmoresustainable.

Regional networkSolidaridad views multi-stakeholder partnerships as criticalto addressing intractable problems such as poverty, envi-ronmental degradation and weak governance. These part-nerships are based on the principles of equity, transparencyand mutual benefit. Cooperation with Hindustan Unileveron sustainable tea for India, with E.I.D. Parry on sugar cane,Ned Commodities and ECOM on coffee, and with H&M andFLA on garments were some of the highlights this year. Atthe same time, the office has built up a network of 12 NGOpartners across the region, with a combined staff of around90 specially trained professionals working in the field. These

Indonesia,teapicking.TheLestaristandardinIndonesiaencouragessustainableimprovementbyteagrowersandbuyersalike.

Photo:RogervanZaal


SouthandSouthEastAsiaRegionaldevelopm

ent

partners work alongside Solidaridad, pooling resources andgenuinely sharing risks and benefits. It is not the intention toreplace local NGOs, as it’s much more efficient to cooperateandtransferskillsandcapacity.Solidaridadisthusconstantlychanging, leveraging NGOs’ skills and preparing them to takeoveroldroles,whilediscoveringnewones.

Regional programmesThepoorestofthepoorinSouthandSouthEastAsiaareland-lessagriculturalworkersandsmallholdersinremoteregions.Most of them work inefficiently. As a result, critical biodiver-sity,waterandenvironmentalthresholdsareexceeded.Manycontinuetoliveinpovertyduetothehighercostsofproduc-tion, low productivity and lack of access to high value supplychains. Solidaridad believes that better farming is key toreducing poverty and providing access to health and educa-tionforruralpopulations,aswellascurbingmigrationtotheovercrowded cities in the region. Often crop yields and live-stock densities can be increased using existing, proven tech-nology while reducing environmental impact and externalinputs.Inthisway,efficiencygainscanimproveincomeswhileavoiding agricultural expansion and environmental degrada-tion. Solutionsarealsobeingsoughtthroughchangesinrapidlygrowing and increasingly aware regional markets. Whilecompanies must play a leading role towards sustainableproduction and consumption, this must be supported bygovernment policies and an active civil society. We believe,thatallthreeactorsneedtoworktogethertocreatesustain-ablemarkets. To this end Solidaridad worked on tea, coffee, cocoa, soy,sugar cane, palm oil, cotton, garments and fisheries. In all ofthese commodities, South and South East Asia region is notonly one of the biggest producers, creating employmentfor millions of smallholders and workers, but also one of thebiggestmarkets.

Organizational developmentsSolidaridadSouthandSouthEastAsiaisresponsiblefordevel-oping and managing programmes in South and South EastAsia with a staff of 9 people. In 2008 regional headquartersweresetupinNewDelhi,IndiaasanISO9001-2008certifiedIndian NGO. This gives the regional organization more cred-ibility as it’s based on an external audit. In 2011, together withSolidaridad China, two Continental Supervisory Board (CSB)meeting were organised. Mr. Stephen Frost (Hong Kong),Mr. Mumunusamy Subbramaniam (India) and Mr. AndrewSupit (Indonesia) currently form the continental supervisoryboard. Hopefully a fourth member will be appointed in 2012.Anon-profitorientedcompanywasalsoregisteredinIndiatoprovide sustainability services to businesses and the processof registering offices in Indonesia, Bangladesh, Vietnam andEasternIndiahasstarted.Acoreteamof10staffwithatleast90 specially trained consultants drawn from partner organi-zationshashelpedtheSolidaridadtobecomealeadingplayerinsustainabledevelopmentintheregion.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Coffee India 1 27 127 30 Smallholdercertificationsupport,tooldevelopment

Prakruthi

Tea India,Indonesia,Vietnam,SriLanka

3 282 332 650 IndianandIndonesiandomesticstandarddevelopmentandimplementation,Utzcertificationsupport

BusinessWatchIndonesia,HindustanLever,IDH,InstituteofSocialDevelopment,SolidaridadAsia

Cocoa India,Indonesia,Vietnam

3 238 205 30 Smallholdercertificationsupport,policyadvocacy

BusinessWatchIndonesia,LêHồngVân

Cotton/Textiles India,Bangladesh

3 107 79 – Workerstraining,tooldevelopment

CSRCentre,Conquest,Industreecraft

Sugarcane India 2 49 37 600 Enhanceproductivityofsugarfarmers,Bonsucrocertification,policyadvocacy

IFC-SouthAsia,SolidaridadAsia

Total regional budget 703 780 1,310


China

Stakeholder approach to promote sustainability

To address numerous sustainability challenges in China’s vast agricultural sector, Solidaridad has adopted a stakeholder engagement strategy which promotes sustainability and social responsibility in key industries. Given the enormous size of these sectors, this approach, which focuses on local participation and ownership, is crucial to ensuring long lasting impact.

Macro developmentsIn March 2011, the Chinese government published its TwelfthFive-Year Plan, which is designed to address rising inequalityand create more sustainable growth by prioritizing moreequitable wealth distribution, increased domestic consump-tion,andimprovedsocialinfrastructureandsocialsafetynets.Thegovernmentaimstorebalancetheeconomy,shiftingtheemphasis from investment towards consumption and fromurban and coastal growth towards rural and inland develop-ment.AmongthecentralthemesofthePlan,‘greendevelop-ment’ and ‘improving farmers’ livelihood’ in particular corre-spondtoSolidaridadChina’smajorgoals,especiallygiventhelackofotherinternationaleffortspromotingsustainabilityintheagriculturalsector. In the CSR arena, Solidaridad is working with leading

standardorganizationssuchasSocialAccountabilityInterna-tional, Business Social Compliance Initiative, the WorldwideResponsible Accredited Production, and the China NationalTextile&Apparel Confederation (CNTAC) to create a localstakeholder platform. The major objective is to use this plat-formtoensurelocalbuy-intointernationalstandards,topushfor more collaboration among standards and to improve thequalityandintegrityofsocialaudits.

National networkSolidaridad China focuses on establishing stakeholderplatforms in soybean, tea and cotton sectors to promotesustainability jointly with local entities. With over 100millionproducersandatleastonethirdoftheglobaltradingvolumeof each commodity, China has a crucial role to play in all

WomenpickingcottonattheGuoxinCottonCooperative.

Photo:Solidaridad


ChinaRegionaldevelopm

ent

of these sectors if global sustainability initiatives are to bea success. Parallel to Solidaridad’s signature approach ofoffering hands-on support to producers, Solidaridad makesintensive efforts to engage key stakeholders –especiallycompanies and government agencies– in order to advo-cate the concept of ‘shared responsibility’ throughout valuechains. In addition to managing producer support projects,Solidaridad has facilitated the establishment of two nationalstakeholder platforms, which promote sustainability in thesoybean and tea sectors, respectively. We are currentlyworking with key industry leaders to set up a sustainabilityplatformforthecottonsector.Inaddition,by2011Solidaridadhad completed baseline studies on sustainability challenges,farmers’ needs and consumer perceptions. To date, ourproducer support projects have spread to at least six under-developed provinces, resulting in tangible benefits for over10,000marginalizedsmallholders.

National programmesIn2011anexistingpartnershipwiththeChinaSoybeanIndustryAssociation(CSIA)wasstrengthened.TheCSIA,whichisnowa full member of RTRS, has offered to host the 2013 RTRSannualconferenceinChina.CSIAwillalsobealeadingimple-mentationpartnerforupcomingproducersupportprojects.In addition, Solidaridad is working with the China Chamberof Commerce for Foodstuffs and Native Produce (CFNA) toenlist the support of leading Chinese importers of soybeanand palm oil for RTRS and RSPO-certified products. CFNAis also a leading partner in developing a set of guidelines forChina’soutwardinvestmentintheagri-commoditiessector. In 2011, Solidaridad signed a Memorandum of Under-standingwiththeChinaTeaMarketingAssociation(CTMA)topromotethenewlypublishedChineseGuidelinesforSustain-able Tea in eight provinces. CTMA is also a partner in two

major producer support projects. The CTMA has providedfreeexhibitionspaceandopportunitiestospeakatmajorteaconferences and expos. Other organizations with which Soli-daridadcollaboratesincludetheSino-GermanCSRProjectofGIZ, Yunnan Agricultural University, China Jiliang University,Global Village Beijing, the Kunming Daite Centre for PovertyAlleviationandtheHuoshanCentreforEnvironmentProtec-tionandPovertyAlleviation. Solidaridad’s cotton programme in China is currentlyconcentrating on supporting the Better Cotton Initiative(BCI), which is supported by IDH and global brands such asH&M, IKEA, Levi’s and M&S. Chinese partners include theResearchCentreofRuralEconomy,theChinaCottonAssocia-tion, the China Cotton Farmers’ Association, plus large-scaleChinese spinners and local governments. In the downstreamsector of the textile chain –in collaboration with ZhejiangUniversity and leading global brands– Solidaridad’s cleanerproduction projects with five dyeing mills in Zhejiang haveresulted in saving 2million metric tonnes water and 1,000tonsofCO2emissionwithin14months.

Organizational developmentsUntil July 2011, Solidaridad had four full-time staff: a director,a programme manager for agri-commodity projects, a fieldspecialist for the cotton programme, and a tea programmeofficer. By the end of November 2011, the capacity hadincreased to eight FTEs to manage commodity-basedprojects and CSR programmes. In 2012 the team may befurther expanded to 10FTE, with additional staff mainlyworking on the agri-commodity and tea programmes. Thetarget size of Solidaridad China in the long run –at least15FTE– is needed to strengthen work related to the farmerssupportprogrammeandpossiblyextendintothesugar-caneandelectronicssectors.



Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Tea China 3 158 97 110 Trainingandsupportforsmallholders,developnationalguidelines,influencepolicy

ChinaTeaMarketingAssociation,YunnanUniversityofAgriculture,YunnanTeaInstitute,Wu-Yu-Tai

Cotton China 4 310 275 431 NationalStakeholderCouncil,ProducersupportforBCIandorganiccottoninXinjiang,communitydevelopment

TarimUniversity,RCRE(MoA),XinjiangNormalUniversity,AcademyofScience

Textiles China 3 44 30 19 WetprocessingimprovementPrimarksuppliers,socialimprovementTedBaker&Falconsuppliers

ZhejiangUniversityCleanerProductionCenter

Soy China 2 67 69 50 NationalinterpretationofRTRS;FieldtestofRTRSprinciplesandcriteria,trainingofleadfarmers

ChinaSoybeanIndustryAssociation

Palmoil China – – – 20 ParticipatinginRSPO/RSPOsupportgroupsinChina

CFNA,DFID,WWF



TheNetherlands

Global player in sector-wide innovation

In 2011 Solidaridad Netherlands launched new farmer support programmes, public-private partnerships targeting mainstream sustainable agri-supply chains, with support of the Dutch government and 17 companies. They are closely linked to the round tables for soy, sugar cane, palm oil, cotton and livestock. It is a result of the new focus of Solidaridad Netherlands on market linkage and fund raising.

Market linkage: a new paradigm for changeTheNetherlandsplaysamajorroleintradingandprocessingagricultural products. Cooperation with market players thatplay a key role in the supply chain, such as traders, brandingcompaniesandretailers,isthereforeessential.Theirsourcingpatterns influence the selection of Solidaridad’s local part-nersandtheirknowledgeofproductionandlogisticsimprovethe effectiveness of the programmes. Even more important,only with improved trading conditions and better access tomarkets can the impact of seed-corn public funding be guar-anteed. In 2011 Solidaridad’s efforts to connect with a range ofmarket players proved successful. There is now growingawareness that sustainability is a key component of compa-nies’ license to operate. And there is a new understanding ofthe role that development cooperation should play. This is aparadigm shift, creating an unexpected acceleration in chal-lenging partnerships. Companies such as Unilever, Ahold andMarshavepledgedupto100%sustainablesourcing,oftenaspartofnon-competitivesectorinitiatives.Theyrecognizetheurgency of sustainable production and processing and feelthat this will help secure the future supply of raw materials.Solidaridadcooperateswithsuchcompaniesinmanyways:atglobalroundtables,intrainingfarmerstoengageinsustainableagriculturalpractices,intrade,andinmarketingandcommu-nication about products that are branded as sustainable.

Changing patterns of fundingThe past year was a challenging one for Solidaridad. Thebudget showed a deficit of almost a million euros because aproposal for renewed funding through the Dutch govern-ment’s co-financing programme for Civil Society Organiza-tions(MFS2)wasrejected.However,inapolicydialoguewiththe Ministry for Development Cooperation, consensus wasreachedondefininganewbudgetlineforamulti-annualplanthat will help producers comply with the standards for moreresponsibleproductioninfiverapidlyexpandingsectors:soy,sugar, palm oil, cotton and livestock. This programme, whichisknownasthefarmerssupportprogramme,isfundedbytheDutch government to the tune of €29.5million. Co-fundingby the public sector and corporate donors will raise at least€40millionoveraperiodoffouryears. This high level of corporate co-funding has establisheda new trend. Companies are increasingly willing to financeproducers’effortstoengageinsmartsustainablelanduse,aslongasorganizationsdedicatedtodevelopmentcooperationalsocontribute.

Solidaridad’s positioning as a transition manager –sup-porting sustainable production in the agricultural, industrialand mining sectors– raises expectations that it can indeeddeliverconcreteservicesthatwillfacilitatethistransition.Thenetworkstructure,withitseightregionalexpertisecentresindevelopingcountries,isincreasinglyseenasaviableproposi-tion.

Goals for 2011Solidaridad aimed to intensify cooperation with the privatesector and compensate for the rejection by MFS2 bycombining Dutch government funding for producer supportprogrammes with private sector funding. Resources wereearmarkedforlobbyingformoresustainablepublicprocure-mentpracticesandincreasingpublicawarenessofunsustain-able gold mining practices by forging alliances for change.Other key initiatives were to build alliances with companiestodevelopsustainablesupplychains,cooperatewiththemonmarketingandconsumerawareness,andtoinfluenceEUpoli-ciesontrade.

Achievements in 2011Solidaridad Netherlands office coordinated market linkagewithin the EU, with a special focus on countries in whichbrands that play a role in existing networks are important:Netherlands, the UK, Germany, Scandinavia, Switzerland,FranceandBelgium.Roundtablesarenowrecognizedasoneof the main catalysts for sustainable change. The farmerssupport programme, with its focus on mitigating climatechange, is now an alternative to MFS2 funding and there wasclosecooperationwithanumberofDutchembassiesonfoodsecurity and the trade to aid transition. A Memorandum ofUnderstanding was signed with the Dutch sustainable tradeinitiative (IDH) on strategic cooperation and more fundingwas receivedfrom private sector.Public procurement guide-linesnowrecognisetheimportanceofmainstreamstandardsforsustainablepurchasingandagoldcampaignwassuccess-fully developed, together with new partners who are inter-estedinmarketingFairtradeandFairminedgold.

Lessons learned and prospects for 2012Therestrictedavailabilityofsustainableproductsisalimitingfactor. Solidaridad’s added value is its ability to supportproducer development, which increases volumes. In somecases, for example, with soy and palm oil, it’s necessary toorganize purchasing by creating a cost-sharing mechanismamong the partners in the supply chain. Consumer aware-


Regionaldevelopment

TheNetherlands

ness of sustainable products is growing and corporate socialresponsibility –balancing social, economic and environ-mentalissues–isbecomingmainstream. SolidaridadexpectstoseetheintroductionofFairtradeandFairmined labelled jewellery on the Dutch market, which willbeafirstworldwide.Intermsoffundraising,theorganizationis developing an innovative proposition based on a theory ofchangewhichlinksoptimizinglandusewithmitigatingexpan-siontoareaswithhighconservationvaluethroughpaymentsforenvironmentalservices.

Organizational developmentThenewfocusofSolidaridadNetherlandsonmarketlinkage,fundraising, lobbying, communication and campaigns ischanging the organization. Responsibility for most of theproduction-related programmes will be transferred tocolleagues in other Solidaridad organizations in the networkin the course of 2012. In 2011 Solidaridad NL employed 28people(60%femaleand40%male),atotalof23.7FTE.


Productgroup

Countries Projects Budget2011x€1.000

Realised

x€1.000

Budget2012x€1.000


Coffee Vietnam,Mexico,Nicaragua,Congo,Netherlands,Ireland,Switzerland

10 4,660 2,734 2,015 Marketdevelopment,fundraising,innovativeclimateprogramme,cross-regionandcross-commoditylearning

KNVTK,SCAE,TCC,Sustentables,SerJusto,JustGreen,ECOM,IrishAid,Schulter,PSO

Tea Kenya,Malawi,India,Indonesia

3 1,348 878 682 Monitoringandevaluation,marketdevelopment,lobby,genderresearchandexchange

IDH,SaraLee,DEFoundation,UtzCertified,RainforestAlliance,EthicalTeaPartnership,WURLEI,TCC,AlbertHeijn

Cocoa Netherlands 2 3,270 3,369 1,011 Marketdevelopment,communicationsandcampaign,lobby,donorcoordination,coordinationimpactstudies.

Mars,UtzCertified,Heinz,FrieslandCampina,Cargill,Olam,IDH,TCC

Fruit Netherlands,EU,Kenya,Ghana

6 74 127 62 SupportforWorldBananaForum,donorrelations,marketdevelopmentinEurope,marketlinkageKenyaandGhana

WBFanditsparticipants(mainlyDole,ChiquitaandBioversity);AgroFair;IDH;FrieslandCampina

Cotton Netherlands,Mali,Senegal,Tanzania,Zambia,India

28 1,516 2,323 775 Marketdevelopment(includingsupportMSIs),projectimplementation,communication,donorrelationmanagement

BCI,BCFTP(includingIDH,H&M,LS&Co,Adidasa.o.),ProCotton/RaboFoundation,FordFoundation,GSRD

Textiles Netherlands,UnitedKingdom,Germany,Bangladesh,India

12 650 943 600 Marketdevelopment(includingsupportforMSIs),projectimplementation,communication,donorrelationmanagement

Made-By,BSCI,ASN,EuropeanCommission

Gold Netherlands,UnitedKingdom,Denmark,Germany

1,423 764 509 Marketdevelopment,communicationandcampaigns

FairtradeFoundation(UK),MaxHavelaar(NL),FairtradeMaerket(DK),privatejewellers,AllianceforResponsibleMining

Soy Netherlands,India 1,759 1,566 2,385 Producerdevelopment,marketdevelopment,policyinfluencing,round-tableparticipation,planningmonitoringandevaluation

Arla,RoyalFrieslandCampina,Keurslagers,Cono,Ben&Jerry’s,ASA,RTRS

Palmoil Netherlands,Malaysia,Indonesia

609 501 2,044 Producerdevelopment,marketdevelopment,influencingpolicy,round-tableparticipation,planningmonitoringandevaluation

Johnson&Johnson,CONO,Ben&Jerry’s,Unilever,RSPO,IOPRI

Sugarcane Netherlands,Pakistan,India

4 793 689 2,726 Marketdevelopment,projectmonitoring,policyinfluencing

Bonsucro,WWF,Suikerunie,NorthSeaGroup

Bio-basedeconomy

Netherlands,Mozambique,Brazil

697 626 1,363 Marketdevelopment,projectmonitoring,policyinfluencing

GdFSuez,NorthSeaGroup,AgencyNL

Livestock Netherlands,Brazil,Namibia,Botswana

0 145 1,022 Producerdevelopment,marketdevelopment,policyinfluencing,round-tableparticipation,planningmonitoringandevaluation

ZandbergenWorld’sFinestMeat,GRSB

Others 359 340 346


*BudgetrealisedincludesprogrammesexecutedbyotherSolidaridadregionalexpertisecentres.


Supervision and finance

Buildinganinnovativelearningorganization

Organizationdevelopmentinprogress

Internationalfundraising

Photo:KekeKeukelaar

InaregionalcocoastoragecentreofthetradingcompanyArmajaroinGhana,aclerkcheckstheamountsofcocoareceived.


Newgovernanceandmanagementstructures

Building an innovative learning organization

Inthepastyearsignificantprogresswasmadeinfurtherdevel-opingthenewstructuresofSolidaridadNetwork.ContinentalSupervisory Boards in Asia and Latin America were estab-lished, the first Executive Director of Solidaridad Networkwas appointed and an international secretariat was installedin Utrecht in the Netherlands. In close cooperation withnine Solidaridad regional offices on four continents, a Multi-Annual Strategic Plan was drawn up and the first successfulstepsweremadetowardsdecentralizedfundraisinginandbytheregions.

Supervision

SolidaridadNetworkaimstobeaneffective,influential,inno-vative learning organization which is among the very bestcontributorstointernationaldevelopmentcooperation. The ambition behind the new governance structure is theidea that the Network should be recognized as a credibleorganization with a transparent, accountable, cost-effectivesystem of governance which reflects the vision, programmeandmodusoperandiofSolidaridad. Its guiding principles are to ensure a large degree ofautonomy for the regional expertise centres, inter-connec-tion through global commodity strategies, a professionalapproach to maximizing the impact of programmes, and asharedmissionandvalues.

Thenewgovernancemodelhasthefollowingstructure:atthehighest (international) level is the International SupervisoryBoard. At the continental level the four Supervisory Boardsprovide strategic direction for the regional programmes.The Continental Supervisory Boards delegate one or twomemberstotheInternationalSupervisoryBoard.– The Continental Supervisory Board for Asia, which repre-sents South and South East Asia and China, is legally estab-lished in Hong Kong. The Board is currently formed byStephenFrostfromHongKong,China,MumunusamySubbra-maniamfromIndiaandAndrewSuppitfromIndonesia.In2011two meetings were held, one in February in Hong Kong andoneinAugustinJakarta.– The Latin-American Board, which is legally registered inPanama, met for the first time in December 2011, in Lima,Peru. Its members are Roberto Codas from Paraguay, MarinaStadthagen from Nicaragua, Patricia Flores, a Peruvian livinginArgentina,andAndréNassarfromBrazil.– The Supervisory Board for the Solidaridad Regional Exper-

tise CentreintheNetherlands,whichmetfourtimesin2011inUtrecht,hassevenmembers:RoelfHaan,JanvanHoof,GerritMeester, Ton Geurts, Saskia Borgers, Maarten van der GraafandMariekedeWal.– The Continental Supervisory Board for Africawillbeestab-lished in the course of 2012. The legal registration procedurehasbeenstartedinKenya. Afterthefullestablishmentofthefourcontinentalboards,the International Supervisory Board will be formed. Its firstmeetingisexpectedtotakeplaceinMay2012inAmsterdam. In accordance with Solidaridad’s Articles of Association,themembersoftheSupervisoryBoardsreceivenopayment,eitherinmoneyorinkind.

Management

Executive DirectorTheExecutiveDirector’smaintaskistotaketheleadinpolicymaking at the international level, as well as in implementingandevaluatingthispolicy.Heorsheisresponsiblefordefiningameaningfulcontextfortheorganization–ineffect,decidingwhich ‘business’ we are in– balancing current and futureneedsandshapingvaluesandstandards. NicoRoozenhasbeenappointedasthefirststatutoryExec-utive Director of Solidaridad Network on a part-time basis(12 hours per week). The nomination is for four years and,during this period, he will combine this position with that ofManaging Director of Solidaridad Netherlands (24 hours perweek).Afterthistransitionalperiod,thepositionofExecutiveDirector of Solidaridad Network will be a separate appoint-ment. The Supervisory Board has approved a clear remunera-tion policy. The total gross remuneration approved for theExecutive Director is €121,549 per year, on the basis of a36-hour week. This amount is composed of a gross salary of€94,404plusfringebenefits(healthcareandpension)worth€27,145.

The Network secretariatAt the Solidaridad office in Utrecht an international secre-tariathasbeenestablishedtoprovideservicestothenetworkin the areas of finance (Melanie Koster), monitoring andevaluation(JacolinePlompfromNairobi,Kenya),fundraisingand partnerships (Tijmen Rooseboom), as well as generalassistance to the Executive Director and the ExecutiveBoard of Directors of Solidaridad Network (Monique van deVijver).


Supervisionandfinance

Within the network secretariat, eleven InternationalProgramme Coordinators (IPCs) balance the global andregionalaspectsofthevariouscommodityprogrammes.Eachregional programme has its own dynamics, but ultimatelymust make a contribution to the global commodity strategyof the network as a whole. This requires a matrix organiza-tion, combining the line management of directors (regionalperspective)withglobalstrategiesforcommodities.

International programme coordination mainly focuseson internal activities, such as defining a global commoditystrategy, supporting effective programme implementation,strengtheninginnovationandlearning,andexternalfunctionssuchasinternationalrepresentationandcommunication.

Solidaridad Network

Supervision

Solidaridad NetworkInternational Supervisory BoardconsistsoftworepresentativeseachfromfourSupervisoryBoards

AsiaSupervisoryBoard AfricaSupervisoryBoard LatinAmericaSupervisoryBoard NetherlandsSupervisoryBoard

Management

The International Executive DirectorreportstotheInternationalSupervisoryBoardfortheSolidaridadNetwork

There are nine regional directors in:

China SouthandSouthEastAsia WestAfrica EastAfrica SouthernAfrica AndesRegion CentralAmerica SouthAmerica Netherlands

Implementation

The International Secretariat supportstheInternationalExecutiveDirector

Nine centres are with staff responsible for developing regional programmes, located in:• Beijing,China• NewDelhi,India• Accra,Ghana• Johannesburg,SouthAfrica• Nairobi,Kenya• Lima,Peru• CiudadGuatemala,Guatemala• BuenosAires,Argentina• Utrecht,Netherlands

QualitycontrolofcoffeeinKenya.

Photo:Solidaridad


Organization

Organization development in progress

The nine Solidaridad organizations that form the globalnetworkdevelopaccordingapatern.Thismodeloforganiza-tion development defines three stages: initial, intermediateand mature. Each organization is scored against several indi-catorsofprogress.MostoftheSolidaridadorganizationsnow

score intermediate or mature on most of the indicators. Theoriginal plan was that in 2015 all organizations would achievethe mature phase. Progress is promising and, as a result, thegoalmaybeachievedonetotwoyearsearlier.

Organizationindicator Initial Intermediate Mature

Structure: tobeestablished legallyestablished legalpluslocalembeddingandvitalmulti-stakeholdernetwork

Procedures: minimalproceduresdesigned projectcycle ISO9000certification

Financialgovernance/administration:

basicfinancialmanagement financialmanagement(MANGO),externalauditing

thesameasintermediate

Staffing/managementcapacity: localrepresentative corestaff extendedstaff/humanresourcepolicy

Policydevelopment/planning: pilotprojects integralplanning multi-annualstrategicplan

Programmeandprojectmanagement:

partneridentificationandprojectformulation

thesameasinitialplusprogramme/projectapprovalandlocalbudgetmanagement

thesameasintermediate

Monitoringandevaluation: basicmonitoringsystem monitoringandevaluationsystem thesameasintermediatepluslearningorganizationandimpactmeasurement

Fundraisingcapacity: costcentre limitedexternalfunding fundingstrategy,substantialexternalfunding

Governance: ContinentalSupervisoryBoardestablished

InternationalSupervisoryBoardestablished

Photo:Solidaridad


Supervisionandfinance

Financialreport

International fundraising

Up to now, most of Solidaridad Network’s funding has comefromDutchsources.AbroadfundingbaseintheNetherlands,both in the public and in the private sector, has enabled theorganizationtogrow,butinthelongrunmakesitvulnerable,due to this excessive dependence on unpredictable devel-opments in Dutch society. There are interesting options forexpanding the funding base internationally, our strategictargetbeingmorebalancedfunding. The unique proposition of Solidaridad as a TransitionManager, working towards a more sustainable economy, inclose cooperation with the private sector, addressing coreissuessuchasoptimisinglandusewhilemitigatingexpansionto areas with a high degree of biodiversity is of interest todonorswithastrategicvision. A challenging option is to explore options for matchingfunding from companies for producer developmentprogrammes.Suchprivatecontributionsbringgenuineinno-vationintodevelopmentcooperation.Thetargetofmatchingpublic money with private money is feasible for many of ouroperations. Decentralised fundraising is the fundraising of the future.The capacity of the regional offices in the South is growingand will increasingly contribute to the funding of our activi-ties. The target for the Network budget in 2015, with abalance between 50% funding by the Dutch office and 50%by the offices in Asia, Africa and South America appearsrealistic.

Budget x €1,000

Realized in 2011

Status in February 2012

Solidaridad Netherlands 15,065 18,000

Solidaridad South America 1,642 1,544

Solidaridad Andes 247 160

Solidaridad Central America 21 –

Solidaridad West Africa 192 3,000

Solidaridad East and Central Africa 980 1,015

Solidaridad Southern Africa 121 –

Solidaridad South and South East Asia 49 500

Solidaridad China – –

Solidaridad Network 18,319 24,220

Photo:KekeKeukelaar

Tea picker on a Malawian estate. Tea is the second highest foreign exchange earner for Malawi. But the value of tea is low. And farmers face huge challenges, such as irrigation problems in the dry season, depletion of natural resources, and a degradation of tea quality. Smallholder tea farmers are not well organised and face many bottlenecks in the production of tea. Through certification, they can improve their farming techniques and contribute significantly to their income and the national tea production. In Malawi Solidaridad supports under the Utz Certification scheme with European target markets. In Indonesia Lestari is a new sustainable tea certification scheme that Solidarid helped to roll out with great succes in 2011. Many producers and buyers now participate in the Lestari system thus providing a solid basis for further sustainable development of the vast tea sector of Indonesia. Meanwhile the real driver for a break through in sustainable tea has to come from the Asian consumers market where 70 % of all tea is sold. Promising is the cooperation with Hindustan Unilever to develop a sustainability standard suited for Indian producers. Solidaridad aims to enforce the activities to raise sustainable demand by Asian tea companies.

You can support our work with a donation:Solidaridad’t Goylaan 153525 AA Utrechtthe NetherlandsIBAN: NL45 RABO 0129 9111 51BIC/SWIFT: RABONL2U

www.solidaridadnetwork.org www.solidaridad.nl

2011 Annual Report Solidaridad Network

Documents

Transcript of 2011 Annual Report Solidaridad Network