Voice & Choice
Collaborative governance at Tanzanian
Fairtrade co-operatives
Shannon Sutton
July 3, 2012
Overview
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Fairtrade Governance
Case Study: Tanzanian Coffee Coops
Collaborative Governance & EPG Theory
Representation
Gender Equity at KNCU
Methodology & Fieldwork
Fairtrade
Timeline
•1940s: Alternative trade, world shops
•1980s: UCIRI, Max Havelaar
•1997: FLO established
•Today: 1.2 million farmers, €4.3 billion retail sales
Definition (FINE, 2001)
[Fairtrade] is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency
and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade. It
contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading
conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and
workers – especially in the South.
Voice
“A major part of Fairtrade International’s global strategy is to give producers and
workers a stronger voice within the system.”
-Fairtrade International 2010 Annual Report
Governance changes
• New producer networks in Africa & Asia
• Producer ownership now 50% (12 of 24)
• Producer networks on the BoD (4 of 14)
Fairtrade Africa
•500,000 producers, 260 orgs, 47 products,
26 countries
•58% of all FT producers
Tanzanian Coffee Co-ops
Tanzanian coffee co-operatives
•#1 country for Fairtrade farmers
(148,000)
•KNCU & KCU: 60,000-70,000 farmers
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Unions of primary societies
Breakaway groups
Country context
•Colonial rule
•Independence and Nyerere’s Ujamaa
•Liberalization and competition
•CRMP 2005-2015: strong coops, good
governance, empowered members
Collaborative Governance
Fung & Wright (2003):
• Empowered Participatory Governance (EPG)
• Combines popular participation, decentralized decisionmaking, practical focus, continuous deliberation and
engagement, and cooperation between parties and interests
that frequently find themselves on opposite sides of political
and social questions.
• Institutional vs. substantive participation
EPG & Fairtrade
EPG
Fairtrade’s Fit
Bottom-up participation
Lack
opportunity/information/resources
/desire
Deliberation
Democratic decision-making
Aggregation?
Devolution of power
Delegates
Accountability & communication
General Assembly
Power relations
Role of leaders
Equity
Inclusion of marginalized
(women, migrant workers)
Participation & Representation
Do we need Fung & Wright plus?
Decision-making
• Expert knowledge vs. widespread participation (Le Mare,
2008)
• Diverse actors with varying interests (Taylor, 2005, Bonin et al
2003)
• Marginalized groups (women, migrant workers, landless) less
active (Fisher 2007, Leutchford 2007)
• Who gets left out?
Gender Equity in Kilimanjaro
“The co-operative business is a man’s business in Tanzania. Both men and
women participate from the beginning. But when it comes to reaping, it
belongs to men.”
- G2 Interview, Moshi, May 2012
Gender
•1/5 members are female
•Few women in leadership positions
•Women’s double day
Land laws
•1999 Land Act & Village Act
•Tribal and cultural factors
Capacity Building
•MEMCOOP: training/empowering members
•Breakaway G32 groups: Mamsera
Methodology
• Participatory research
– Reflexivity and flexibility
• Interviews
– Group I Unstructured key informant interviews (15)
– Group II Semi-structured Tanzania interviews (14)
– Group III Structured producer interviews producers
• Participant observation
• Document review
• Research Assistant: gender and access
Interviews
Tanzania: May 2012 (Group II)
• Moshi: KNCU, KCU, KDCU, Government officials, Coffee
experts, academics
Tanzania & Kenya: August 2011
• Exploratory at tea and coffee farms
Participant observation
• Ghana, November 2011 (Fairtrade Africa Convention)
• Germany, February 2011 (BioFach)
Thank You!
Shannon Sutton
Queen Mary, University of London
s.e.sutton@qmul.ac.uk