Implementation Organisation:  The Integra Founfation

Project Title: Promotion of Fair Trade as a recognised instrument of development cooperation in Slovakia and Bulgaria

Total Costs: 62.818 euros

Request from the Fund: 44.920 euros

Overall Context at the Beginning of the Project and Expected Results:

The priority area for the Integra Foundation was building the capacity of and support to fair trade organisations in Slovakia and Bulgaria. This meant that fair trade should not only rise on the agenda of the general public and the government, but Slovak and Bulgarian Fair Trade NGOs should have easier access to European Fair Trade associations/networks (e.g. IFAT and NEWS) and to fair trade events at the EU level. It also planned to organise exchange visits between members of COFTA (the Cooperation of Fair Trade in Africa) and Slovak and Bulgarian Fair Trade organisations. As partners for its activities it identified Integra Bulgaria, the ECIP Foundation, the NG(D)O Platform in Slovakia and the AU Chamber of Commerce’s representation based in Bratislava. In order to measure progress the Integra Foundation planned to develop a baseline study at the beginning of the Project with 1200 interviewees, followed by an end of project survey at the end. Sadly, they had to report that they only managed to interview 700 mainly young urban interviewees, which did not provide a cross section of the whole urban population as intended.

Results after Implementation:

In the midterm report, covering the period July- November 2008, the Intergra Foundation reported successful exchange visits by a Bulgarian and Slovak representative to the Fair Trade producers and activists in Kenya and of a the Chairman of the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, the largest producer of FT coffee in Ethiopia to Slovakia. However, as the PF secretariat rightly commented: it is not clear how these two activities contributed to the objectives of the PF, i.e. a strengthening of national NG(D)O platforms/networks and building capacity to take part in the EU development cooperation debate. As the Integra Foundation took part in call 5 the project terminated in mid 2009.

In its final report the Integra Foundation stated that the degree of public awareness of fair trade issues had greatly increased, but the public authorities had reacted to Integra’s advocacy by implementing fair trade policies in their public procurement practice. The measurement of an increase of public awareness was done through a baseline study of 1200 respondents and an end of project survey with 500 respondents. One can query how representative these surveys were, but together with the reported number of media exposures one could argue that the advocacy activities have achieved a clear public exposure of fair trade issues.

In addition Integra reported intensified contacts with fair trade actors in Kenya and Ethiopia as a result of which the actors have started exporting their products to Eastern Europe. As proposed in the original project proposal Integra worked closely with Integra Bulgaria and achieved the entry of both NGOs in the international fair trade arena and consequently increasing the knowledge of staff in both organisations on fair trade. This was capitalised by the drafting and presenting of a policy brief for policy makers, media and NGOs in both Slovakia and Bulgaria.

The comments one can make in the context of the project implemented by Integra is that it was very focussed on the practical introduction of fair trade products in Slovakia and Bulgaria, but less on policy development either at national or EU level, in spite of the joining up of both organisations with international fair trade institutions (IFAT, WFTO or SFTO) and activities such as obtaining FLO certification. Another comment that could be made is that the cooperation with other NGOs was limited to those within the Integra family, thereby limiting the scope of the activities.