"Let's rebuild with justice is the message that summarises the demands of the Fair Trade movement at international level and which 230 organisations in our country have signed up to. (NGOs, solidarity economy organisations, ethical finance, environmentalists, social enterprises, educational, health and consumer associations, scientific societies, etc.).
On the occasion of World Fair Trade Day (Saturday 8th May), AlterNativa3 joins the statement "Rebuild with justice" issued by an alliance of entities from all over the world: World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), Fair Trade Advocacy Office, Fairtrade, Red Intercontinental de Promoción de la Economía Social Solidaria (RIPESS), CIDSE (Together for the global justice), Act Alliance EU, The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM- Organics International), Social Economy Europe, Wellbeing Economy Alliance, International Cooperatives Alliance.
In this statement we call on institutions and political representatives to call for changes towards a fairer and more sustainable global economic and trade model in the post-COVID era.
Our demands are organised along four axes, from short-term and reactive to long-term and proactive proposals.
PROTECT
- Ensure that workers and producers have personal protective equipment.
- As long as there are measures of social distancing and isolation, freeze taxes on companies that produce basic necessities and guarantee affordable prices for basic necessities and for inputs needed for agricultural production.
RESET
- Make public stimulus programmes available only to companies that comply with the "UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights", OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) guidelines on responsible business conduct, responsible purchasing policies, gender equality, climate and responsible tax behaviour commitments, with limits on shareholder dividends and driven by participatory decision-making and inclusive governance.
- Ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises have access to accessible and flexible financing, with preferential conditions for Fair Trade and social enterprises, cooperatives and other actors of the Social and Solidarity Economy.
- Implement public policies to support Fair Trade, social enterprises, cooperatives and other actors in the Social and Solidarity Economy, organic farming and agro-ecological practices, which will help these alternatives to gradually become the norm. These policies should include business support for producer organisations to access new markets, preferential access to accessible and flexible financing, as well as raising awareness among citizens, in particular young people.
RESTRUCTURE
- Adopt legislation to ensure that all companies and their suppliers respect human, labour and environmental rights, among other aspects, by improving purchasing and marketing practices.
- Promote the gradual transformation of conventional, profit-first businesses to mission-first business models that put people and planet before profit.
- Adopt ambitious national and, where appropriate, regional targets to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, rapidly reduce CO2 emissions and ensure the limit of global temperature rise to 1.5°C, as required by the Paris Agreement.
FAIR DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES
- Reform tax systems to incentivise Fair Trade, organic products, social enterprises, cooperatives and other Social and Solidarity Economy actors and discourage supply chains based on the exploitation of people and the planet.
- Make responsible public procurement the norm and prioritise Fair Trade, organic and social enterprises, cooperatives and other Social and Solidarity Economy actors in the awarding of public contracts.
With the declaration "Let's rebuild with justice" we, the organisations, are making a call on political representatives and international institutions to ensure that the recovery of the economy and trade in the post-COVID era prioritises Human Rights, the protection of the planet and is based on the values of Fair Trade and the Solidarity Economy.
For more information: https://comerciojusto.org/reconstruyamos-con-justicia/
- 08-05-21
