Archives des Partnership - Page 2 of 2

Fair Trade Lebanon, a long-standing partner of SIDI, launches the Terroirs du Liban sales website

The Fair Trade Lebanon (FTL) association – as well as its commercial branch Fair Trade and Tourism Lebanon (FTTL), of which SIDI is a founding shareholder as an extension of the partnership initiated with the FTL association in the 2000s – aims to market products from the country’s rural cooperatives or small producers committed to fair trade. A new stage has been reached with the launch of the Terroirs du Liban sales website.

The aim is to help producers, particularly women, who make up a large number of these cooperatives, to add value to their products by finding them commercial outlets in Lebanon and abroad.

Today, Terroirs du Liban brings together more than 50 cooperatives and 1,500 people, including 1,000 women. The brand is committed to artisanal production with a fair trade label. Our recipes are authentic and based on traditional know-how. Terroirs du Liban brings together some thirty products from all over Lebanon: condiments, spices, syrups, seeds…

Alongside the promotion of ethical products, concrete actions are carried out in the field: support for development projects, raising awareness of organic and ethical farming, safeguarding the sustainability of groundwater, training and support for farmers and cooperatives (from cultivation to processing).

To discover their products, visit their online store: Terroirs du Liban

Palestine – SIDI pursues its commitment to the economic rights of the Palestinian people

[chapeau] In the face of a major new crisis affecting Palestine, SIDI rejects all violence and recalls that the Palestinians are first and foremost a people, of all secular and religious persuasions, deprived of their rights. SIDI intends to pursue its commitment in this area in order to provide the population with access to the essential financial services they need to develop their economic activities. [/chapeau]

SIDI has been involved in Palestine since the 90s, defending the economic rights of the population through its work with local microfinance institutions ACAD and ASALA. It was the first solidarity investor.

Given the recurrence of crises and the violent effects of occupation, it became clear to SIDI that microfinance could not develop without a guarantee fund to cover these contextual risks. Current events once again confirm the relevance of the DAMAN guarantee fund, set up in 2008 by SIDI with its two partners ACAD Finance and ASALA Credit & Development.

This risk is in fact multiplied, and concerns in particular the foreseeable destruction of economic projects financed by microfinance institutions. In practical terms, DAMAN enables local microfinance institutions to continue covering the risk of lending to vulnerable populations in the West Bank and Gaza: when the beneficiary of a microcredit is unable to repay due to acts of war or the consequences of the Israeli occupation, the MFI can then call on DAMAN for compensation.

DAMAN was perpetuated in 2015 by the creation of a non-profit company recognized by the Palestinian Monetary Authority. The DAMAN fund is therefore open to financial support from other players, and today enjoys the support of the NGO Paix Juste au Proche Orient.

SIDI is pursuing its mission as a solidarity investor in Palestine and is standing by its partners as they face up to the dramatic challenges of today. It will continue to call for sincere dialogue and a just peace.

A strong commitment for Forest Fruits in Zambia

[chapeau] Despite the health situation and the temporary suspension of field trips, SIDI is continuing its activities and, at the end of the year, opened a new partnership in Zambia with a company that processes and markets honey products. For SIDI, this is both an opening to a new country of intervention, and a major first in terms of support for the beekeeping sector.[/chapeau]

Since 1998, Forest Fruits has been collecting, processing and marketing beekeeping products for local and international markets. It buys raw honey produced by certified organic (Ecocert) Zambian beekeepers at a remunerative price, and processes it at its Mwinilunga factory. The social enterprise then transports the production to its packaging plant in Lusaka, where the finished product is exported to the sub-region (Zambia, Botswana and South Africa) and abroad. In addition to marketing forest honey for direct consumption, Forest Fruits is developing several types of processed honey-based products (beeswax flakes, candles, honey mustard, etc.). In recent years, thanks to technical support from FEFISOL[1], the company has developed the production of honey vinegar by fermenting lower-quality honey.

Most of the company’s business and its supplier beekeepers are located around the Mwinilunga district. In this isolated region with little economic dynamism, beekeeping is traditionally practiced and represents a considerable source of income for families. Thanks to Forest Fruits, producers benefit from higher remuneration and training to improve the quality of their honey and diversify their agricultural production (trials underway for tea tree production, for example). To develop the region, the company, which currently employs 63 people, also favors local recruitment, and training to enable its employees to upgrade their skills.

Forest Fruits’ business is directly linked to the bees’ honey production periods. Harvesting is spread over two periods of the year, depending on the flowering cycle of the Zambian forests in which the honey is harvested. In such periods, the company needs working capital to enable it to pay producers in cash. FEFISOL has been funding Forest Fruits campaigns since 2014, but this year the fund, which is in transition, was unable to commit to funding for 2021. SIDI has therefore decided to step in and support the next honey campaign by granting a line of credit of $750,000 over 12 months. This loan, backed by several regional and international buyers, will enable the company to purchase 600 tonnes of raw honey at a remunerative price for beekeepers as soon as the harvest is complete.

Despite the current context, SIDI continues to innovate by opening this partnership with Forest Fruits, to contribute to the economic, social and environmental development of a remote region of Zambia.

To find out more about the Forest Fruits social enterprise: https: //www.zambezigold.com/

[1 ] European Solidarity Fund for Africa, managed by SIDI.

NUTRI’ZAZA: a company committed to fighting malnutrition

[chapeau]In a country where child malnutrition still affects one in two infants, Nutri’zaza offers a sustainable way of combating this scourge by marketing a local, effective product that is accessible to all. [/chapeau]

In Madagascar, food security is still very fragile. Children are particularly at risk: it is estimated that one in two children under 5 suffers from chronic malnutrition (ESD, 2008-2009). Less visible than acute malnutrition, which is characteristic of food crises, chronic malnutrition nevertheless delays children’s development and weakens their health. The after-effects are irreversible after the age of two, and chronic malnutrition is one of the main causes of mortality in young children. This is due to the inadequate quality of young children’s diets (breastfeeding practices and diets that do not cover essential needs, poor-quality complementary foods).

It was to address this problem in a sustainable way that the social enterprise Nutri’zaza was created in 2013. Following on from the “Nutrimad” project launched ten years earlier by GRET, Nutri’zaza distributes a complementary food, Koba Aina, to underprivileged populations via a network of baby restaurants (hotelin-jazakely) and a home sales network. [blockquote noquote=”1″ float=”right”] By becoming a founding shareholder of Nutri’zaza, and an active shareholder on the Board of Directors, SIDI is helping to support the company’s development and give it the means to experiment with different models in order to perpetuate a service that plays a key role in reducing chronic malnutrition in Madagascar. [/blockquote] This highly nutritious infant flour provides the elements needed for infant growth when breastfeeding is no longer sufficient (from 6 months) and traditional household meals are not yet sufficient. Koba Aina is produced and packaged from Madagascan raw materials and based on a nutritional formula developed by GRET. The product complies with the strictest international quality standards, both in terms of nutrition and health. This product offers the best value for money on the market, so that we can reach the most vulnerable households. Nutri’zaza also provides families with a place to check their children’s health, with regular weighing and monitoring of undernutrition. To reinforce its impact on the most disadvantaged populations, Nutri’zaza has also developed long-term partnerships with local associations, regularly supplying them with Koba Aina at highly preferential prices.

In order to guarantee the equilibrium of its economic model, Nutri’zaza is banking on the transformation of Koba Aina into a mass consumption product, intended for and accessible to as many people as possible, notably through the traditional distribution network (supermarkets, local grocery stores, etc.).

News from UCLS in Madagascar

A long-term partnership

The Union des Coopératives Lanzan’ny Sambirano (UCLS) is a Producers’ Organization (PO) for cocoa beans located in Madagascar around the Sambirano valley near Ambanja. It was created in 2010 by an association, ADAPS[i], whose aim was to structure agricultural value chains. The UCLS was therefore originally institutionalized by a local development association. SIDI’s partnership manager in Madagascar, with her knowledge of the country and its stakeholders (NGOs from the North, in particular AFDI, the French NGO for the Development of the Industrial Sector), was responsible for the project.[ii]), came into contact with UCLS at a time when SIDI was seeking to strengthen its commitment to agriculture. UCLS and Ethiquable[iii] also wanted to commit to a long-term business relationship.

Ups and downs, but a continuing partnership

SIDI’s first financing operation took place in 2011, with the aim of pre-financing UCLS member cooperatives to enable them to acquire certified organic cocoa beans for export (12.5 tonnes, equivalent to 1/2 “standard” container). Today, SIDI financing enables UCLS to export almost 250 tonnes of certified organic cocoa beans a year. This partnership has not been linear, as UCLS has suffered slowdowns in its activity and misappropriations, which led to the suspension of SIDI funding in 2016. However, SIDI, along with other players, continued to support the Union by providing assistance, in particular in strengthening the organization’s accounting function.

Results today

Beyond the quantitative results, with volumes rising from 12.5 tonnes of cocoa exported in 2011 to almost 250 tonnes today, UCLS has made progress in its organization, reach and member loyalty. It has grown from 6 cooperatives at the start of its activity to almost 20 today, with between 300 and 400 producers depending on the year, who supply it with increasing quantities of cocoa. The relationship is established and the trust present so that growers regularly supply their cooperatives (instead of selling to others).

Despite the difficulties mentioned above, the organization has adapted to the needs of its members. It has succeeded in structuring 20 small cooperatives and supported them in the process of certification by Union agricultural agents. Despite the state of the infrastructure, UCLS manages to send containers of cocoa on a regular basis to meet its annual contracts with Ethiquable and Valrhona.[iv]. Today, the UCLS is looking forward to the collection campaigns with a little more serenity. Its campaign financing resources are more diversified (self-financing, SIDI financing, buyer’s advance, supplier’s credit) and larger.

And challenges

Despite the situation linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, SIDI and UCLS intend to continue working together. SIDI’s long-term approach makes it possible to tackle certain challenges, such as strengthening the structure’s administration without overburdening its processes and costs, increasing income for producers, integrating the smallest producers into cooperatives, and encouraging young people to take up cocoa farming.

Jean-Marie CAVARROC,

SIDI Partnership Officer

[i] Association for the Development of Agriculture and Farming in Sambirano (ADAPS)

[II] Agriculteurs français et développement international (Afdi), an international solidarity association that builds partnerships between French farmers and those in developing countries.

Category: Partnership