Scottish Fair Trade Forum

Evidence submitted to Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Fair Trade Forum welcomes this consultation and offers its assistance and support in whatever way might be required.

What should the strategic aim of any international development policy be?

The Forum believes that the ultimate aim of any international development policy should be to contribute towards the eradication of global poverty. The policy must therefore be directed towards reform of the global structures and systems, like the current trading system, that are the root causes of global poverty Any investment of resource in support of the policy should be sustainable empower poor people, and be transparent and accountable.

How should efforts be divided between raising awareness of international development issues within Scotland and focusing resources on granting project funding to NGOs to undertake projects in developing countries?

Raising awareness of and building public support for international development issues in Scotland is key to the ultimate sustainability of the Parliament’s international development work. Only a public educated to appreciate the relevance of international development to the long-term sustainability of our interdependent world will provide the necessary public support for policies directed towards reducing global poverty.

Scotland has a unique history of recent social activism, including the ‘Make Poverty History’ campaign and the current campaign to become one of the world’s first Fair Trade Nations. These campaigns have been and are sustained by networks of local groups and activists who make up an important national resource for raising awareness of international development issues among the wider population.

At the same time, funding Scottish-based NGOs to undertake projects in developing countries creates important opportunities to demonstrate best international development policy and practice. These projects can demonstrate the importance of working through local partnerships that empower poor people in developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty. Funding should therefore be appropriately divided between the priority commitment to raise awareness and the supporting aim of demonstrating best policy and practice through project funding in developing countries.

What are the most effective ways to raise awareness of the needs of developing countries and what Scots can do to help address these needs?

The Scottish Parliament, Scottish Government and other Scottish public authorities need to provide clear commitment and support for a national awareness raising strategy. This will mean providing leadership, public profile and resources in support of a national strategy that has been agreed with Scottish-based networks, NGOs, faith communities and campaign groups already active in this field.

The Scottish Fair Trade Forum is one of these networks. A cutting edge national campaign to make Scotland one of the world’s first Fair Trade Nations, we are based on a network of grassroots supporters across the country. By enlisting the enthusiasm and expertise of our supporters on international development issues, we work to raise awareness of poverty in the developing world through a specific focus on Fair Trade.

A main focus of our campaign is to raise public awareness of the relationship between how we live and shop here in Scotland and the way in which our decisions and actions as consumers impact both positively and negatively on poor producers in the developing world. We believe therefore that our campaign has the potential to make an important contribution to any national campaign directed towards raising national awareness on international development issues

However, there are many other networks and initiatives that already exist in Scotland and work equally effectively to raise awareness in Scotland of international development issues. These include NIDOS, IDEAS, the Trade Justice Movement in Scotland, CORE Scotland, GCAP Scotland and many others. Utilising the existing experience, skills and knowledge of these networks and groups in agreeing and implementing a forward programme of awareness raising will be critical to the success of any national strategy.

Should an international development policy have a thematic focus, such as on education, health, civil governance issues and, if so, how many and which themes should be included?

Our own thematic focus and expertise is on Fair Trade and we believe that Fair Trade would provide a relevant and powerful theme for raising issues relating to international development and its role in overcoming global poverty. For example, the Fairtrade premium paid to producers in the developing world is based on best international development policy and practice. It is earmarked for investment in the local social and economic infrastructure but is paid directly to local producers and is managed cooperatively by them. They determine the projects that are needed locally in accordance with the local social and economic priorities that they have decided.

There are, however, many other potential thematic focuses that we are not qualified to comment upon. Our chief concern would be that, whatever thematic focuses are chosen, they should have the support of the wider international development community in Scotland and should follow the best policy and practice as established by that wider international development community.
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How can Scotland develop innovative methods of developing an international development policy in order to raise awareness in Scotland, maximise the impact of project funding and ensure the sustainability of projects?

As has been pointed out in previous evidence, DFID’s funding for international development dwarves Scotland proposed budget. It is, therefore, essential that Scotland’s International Development Fund be used strategically in support of DFID’s wider strategic goals and aims, and that Scottish supported projects and campaigns dovetail positively with DFID’s existing and much larger programme.

However, being small has distinct advantages as well. It would be important to focus funding on the themes of trade justice, human rights and empowering poor people that we know from experience in international development work already inspire Scots to meaningful action. There may also be scope for innovation and for piloting new ideas on a smaller scale.

There is also scope to link Scotland’s involvement in international development to existing campaigns such as the Fair Trade Nation campaign. Scotland’s International Development Fund may be dwarfed by DFID,s budget, but the Scottish public sector’s annual spend on goods and services in turn dwarves DFID’s annual budget. A campaign to promote the inclusion of fair trade and ethical criteria in contracts for publicly procured goods and services across the Scottish public sector could make a significant Scottish contribution to international development and impact massively on the awareness of ordinary Scots on international development issues. .

How should any Scottish Government international development policy be administered to ensure that it is efficient, accountable and transparent and meet agreed best practice standards?

Consult with NIDOS and other Scottish-based international networks on the reinstatement of a Steering Group of NGOs, MSPs and other international development actors to oversee accountability and potential future applications for funding. A small group of experts, accountable to the wider public and Scottish Parliament is an efficient use of time and resource.

How can the European and External Relations Committee add value to the existing international development work within Scotland?

This is a question that should be asked regularly. Continue to consult with the international development community within Scotland, because there is a wealth of experience and expertise to be gleaned from them.

Make it a priority to ensure that work is not being duplicated and funding goes to projects that the International Development Community (represented through organisations like NIDOS) are sustainable.