Multi-stakeholder activities and their role in value chain upgrading

1. Multi-stakeholder activities and their role in value chain upgrading Andrew W. Shepherd Pacific Value Chains Conference 17-19 April, 2013

2. Types of multi-stakeholder activities • Inter-professional and other commodity associations • Value chain roundtables • Ad-hoc activities to address specific value chain problems

3. Roles of associations/ councils/ roundtables • Improving policy formulation and implementation by promoting communication between commodity sectors and government(s) • Improving communication within sector • Providing information for chain actors • Promoting products • Developing infrastructure • Developing standards and monitoring their application

4. Types of commodity body • French inter-professional associations • USA industry or trade associations • Value chain roundtables, or tables-filières, and other stakeholder bodies

5. Main features of French system • associations of associations • unanimity • parity • voluntary participation • clear legal status • private sector

6. US industry associations Coverage. Most major agricultural products in USA, e.g. U.S. Apple Association, American Soybean Association, American Sugar Alliance, National Cotton Council Membership. • Members join individually but national committees appointed by state organizations • Broad chain membership

7. USA (Cont) Functioning • Majority decisions, i.e. no parity or unanimity • Often supported by Government-mandated levies (the “check-off”) but no Government representation • Check-off funds cannot be used for advocacy • Some associations use only check-off resources

8. Value chain roundtables • Not associations, but carry out some of same functions • Primarily function in advisory capacity to Ministry of Agriculture, which usually provides the secretariat • Found in Quebec (tables-filières), nationally in Canada, in some countries of Francophone Africa, in Ecuador, Brazil ...

9. Experiences with association development in developing countries • many examples from Francophone Africa; some from Asia • evidence does suggest that associations have been successful in influencing policy formulation • some have the foundation to work further with governments to address policy formulation weaknesses and develop necessary enabling environments

10. However, sustainability is a major issue • difficulties in mobilizing funds and no long-term guarantee of government or other external support • donor-developed associations often have inappropriate structure • trying to run before they can walk by taking on too many activities

11. Future approaches to association development • diversity of contexts and laws means that there is no single formula that can be recommended • options have to be explored by the relevant chain • cost minimisation through maximising use of ICTs and Web2

12. In the Pacific • Industry boards and corporations, e.g. coffee and cocoa, in PNG, but not independent of government; • New Crop and Livestock Council in Fiji • Previous industry councils for wide range of products established with ADB technical assistance • Lack of legal framework and lack of funding from members said to lead to collapse • Elite capture • Can these problems be addressed this time round? • Vanuatu Cocoa Forum

13. Commodity associations

14. Ad-hoc interventions • Can be used to address specific problems in specific chains: • e.g. FAO project in the Caribbean brought together stakeholders from five chains to discuss chain problems and ways of overcoming them. A possible model for the Pacific? • As a way of bringing together all individuals from a particular sector to identify future policy, TA and other interventions required by that sector: • e.g. ITC’s activities with the horticultural sector in Samoa under the AACP programme

15. Thank you! Shepherd@cta.int