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Fairtrade and young people

 

Presenter: Zachary Kiarie
Fairtrade Africa, Head of Region, Southern Africa Network

Fairtrade continues to lead among certification schemes in our work to tackle and eliminate child labour and increase the well-being of children and young people. Fairtrade’s approach puts farmers and communities at the centre, enabling them to take responsibility for increasing the well-being of children and the youth in and around their organizations. To that end, Fairtrade Africa works closely with young people and families, organizations, communities, and governments to address child labour and forced labour affecting the youth. Fairtrade’s ambition is that workers on plantations have the power to improve their own livelihoods and negotiate their wages and terms of work. Fairtrade supports workers to exercise their rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining as part of progress towards mature systems of industrial relations in which workers and management hold regular dialogue about workplace issues. Available data show that there is a real opportunity for Fairtrade to concentrate its support for gender equality by working with plantations. Fairtrade’s ‘Theory of Change’ includes ‘enhanced gender equity and inter-generational sustainability in rural communities’ as one of its six targeted impact objectives. Fairtrade’s monitoring and evaluation efforts have explored some aspects of impact (in particular, income or improved livelihoods of producers), including some aspects related to gender.

Date: Tuesday, August 13, 2019
Time: 13h00-14h00
Venue: PLAAS Boardroom, 2nd Floor Main Hall, University of the Western Cape

For more information, contact: Joy van Dieman
Tel: 021 959 3754 or Email: jvandieman@plaas.org.za