• Unfair Trading Practices Directive now law in most EU countries

    • 25/10/2021
    • Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
    • Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
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    For over 10 years, COLEACP has been part of a coalition of organisations, including Oxfam, the Fair Trade Advocacy Office and the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM-EU), lobbying the EU to tackle unfair trading practices (UTPs) in agricultural supply chains. We advocated strongly for new legal provisions to extend beyond the EU to also protect third country suppliers. The groundbreaking EU Directive 2019/633 on Unfair Trading Practices in Business Relationships between Businesses in the Agricultural and Food Supply… +
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  • Pacific: Training continues in the context of Covid

    • 25/10/2021
    • Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
    • Category: Fiji, Pacific
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    Agriculture in the Pacific region has suffered during the pandemic due to its close relationship with tourism. COLEACP’s regional relay in Fiji, Mereia Volavola, describes the impact: “The Covid19 pandemic seriously affected the businesses in the Pacific, especially the tourism and agriculture sectors. As the international borders closed, the tourism industry collapsed and the demand and export supply for agricultural produce fell. Shipments via airlines and ships were drastically affected as the number of flights and ships reduced and cost… +
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  • COLEACP and partners supporting sustainable entrepreneurship

    • 25/10/2021
    • Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
    • Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
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    During September and October COLEACP collaborated with partners to present four online events, supported by the Fit For Market programme. With OECD: Fruit and Vegetables Industry Series: Session no. 1 On 14 September the OECD Fruit and Vegetables Scheme and COLEACP launched the Fruit and Vegetables Industry Series to highlight the significance of the sector in the context of the United Nations International Year of Fruit and Vegetables (#IYVF2021). The first joint session, with 220 participants, focused on “The fruit… +
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  • Suriname: Working with Surivit to develop a social enterprise business

    • 22/10/2021
    • Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
    • Category: Caribbean, Suriname
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    Surivit, a Surinamese company specialising in fruit and cassava processing, produces cassava flour, baby porridge, cassava pancake mixes and cassava flakes both for local use in Suriname and for export markets. Surivit works closely with women’s cooperative Wi! Uma fu Sranan (WUFS – “We the women of Suriname”), an organisation that aims to improve the living standards of female producers. Surivit has the ambition to professionalise as a social enterprise, with the aim of generating a significant positive impact on… +
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  • The future of food is in women’s hands

    • 16/10/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Angola, Caribbean, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, News, Nigeria, Pacific, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
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    To celebrate World Food Day (16 October) and the International Day of Rural Women (15 October), COLEACP joins the United Nations in celebrating the unsung contribution of ACP women entrepreneurs to our food system. Women are a significant entrepreneurial force as owners of farms, input supply stores, service delivery businesses, and processing and export firms whose contributions to local, national, and global economies have significant impact on poverty reduction, employment creation and wellbeing of rural communities and society at large.… +
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  • Rural women – heroes and role models – are not celebrated enough

    • 15/10/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Angola, Caribbean, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, News, Nigeria, Pacific, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe
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    Did you know? “Rural women make up a quarter of the world’s population and work as farmers, entrepreneurs or agricultural workers” United Nations. To celebrate the International Day of Rural Women (15 October) and World Food Day (16 October), COLEACP joins the UN in celebrating the resilience of rural women in the wake of Covid-19. The pandemic has affected most sectors, and many are still struggling to recover. Agriculture is no exception, especially the women in this sector. According to… +
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  • Surinam: Closing event of the implementation of official controls training

    • 12/10/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Caribbean, News
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    COLEACP’s training on ‘Implementation of Official Controls’ in Suriname took place between 12 August and 3 September 2021. An eager group of 19 employees from the Suriname Ministry of Agriculture undertook this practical training. The focus was on the importance of international standards for phytosanitary measures in relation to mandates for phytosanitary control; phytosanitary inspection; the types of official controls; and organisation and procedures for official controls. To end on a high note, Ing. Parmanand Sewdien, Minister of the Ministry… +
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  • Cameroon: Launch of COLEACP R-SAT

    • 12/10/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Cameroon, News
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    The first meeting of the working group for the implementation of the Rapid SPS Assessment Tool (R-SAT) in Cameroon took place on 30 September 2021 in Yaoundé, where a timetable and next steps were agreed upon. R-SAT has been developed by COLEACP to assist competent authorities, in consultation with key public and private sector stakeholders, to assess the status and functioning of SPS systems. COLEACP would like to thank the Director of the Department of Regulation and Quality Control of… +
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  • Government of Uganda, private sector and EU discuss opportunities for horticultural exports

    • 30/09/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Africa, News, Uganda
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    On 22 September, the EU Delegation in Uganda organised a trialogue between the Government of Uganda, the Ugandan private sector and the European Union to discuss “Challenges and opportunities for Ugandan horticultural exports to Europe”. Europeans hold Ugandan products in high regard, but some issues regarding standards and quality have led to increased controls at EU borders for products coming from Uganda. This represents a great loss for the Government and for the private sector. The meeting identified and discussed… +
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  • Ethiopia: Unveiling of COLEACP Rapid SPS Assessment tool for the Ethiopian NPPO

    • 17/09/2021
    • Posted by: Sandra Borma
    • Category: Africa, Ethiopia
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    A meeting was held on 15 September 2021 with the Ethiopian National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO), the national focal point and the COLEACP team to introduce COLEACP’s Rapid SPS Assessment (R-SAT) tool. The R-SAT tool was developed by COLEACP to support relevant authorities, in consultation with key stakeholders from the public and private sectors, to assess the status and functioning of SPS systems. Bringing together the public and private sectors will allow the development of a priority action plan based… +
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