IICD supported project: Impacts of free trade on agriculture

Countries: Ecuador [EC]

Summary

The Round Table on producing and marketing sustainable products (June 2003, Ibarra) revealed that the group of organizations attending were unaware of the impacts that free trade agreements would cause. For this reason, Acción Ecológica has carried out this project to generate knowledge and awareness on this subject, using new technologies to distribute information, and joining forces to pursue communications strategies geared toward raising consciousness about public policies regarding free trade agreements, in order to protect domestic production and food security. The cross-cutting themes of this project have been the ecological debt, and the Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

Update

Updated: 2007-07-04

2005 / 06 / 02 - The project is being expanded and intensified on the basis of the pilot phase's results. For this reason, the communications strategy plans to work with organizations trained in ICTs, mainly the People's Ecological Network (Red Ecologista Popular). These entities will replicate what they have learned about the FTA using ICTs in their communities, to make the FTA's risks better known. It will continue with a monthly electronic newsletter, called ConSumo Cuidado con el Libre Comercio , updating the Website, massively distributing a CD-ROM with information on the FTA and other related issues, and radio spots on its hazards for Ecuador.

Introduction

The project aims to generate knowledge and awareness about the impact of free trade, in order to develop alternative forms of resistance and pressure in order to protect domestic agriculture and self-supply.

The project informs farmers and other grassroots organizations about the consequences of the FTA and FTAA, using electronic newsletters, a Website, and a CD-ROM. The newsletter is only digital, to use resources environmentally and because of printing costs. It is planned to delegate selected persons in the beneficiary group for training in order to replicate and distribute the information.

They will receive training on handling the text processor and spreadsheet, getting around the Web, using PowerPoint, preparing CD-ROMs with different resources, and using electronic discussion forums.

To design strategies for resistance and pressure, it will be necessary to work with a group of delegates, and existing committees, in order to set a position and actions to undertake against the threat of trans-genetic seeds, patent systems, privatization of water resources, clearing of land, and low-cost agricultural imports. To produce a final document, workshops and on-line discussion forums will be organized.

Acción Ecológica is working to disseminate and resist the impacts generated by petroleum, mining, shrimp, forestry, flower plantations, biotechnology, bio-prospecting, and bio-piracy activities. More macro-level issues are also analyzed, such as environmental impacts on the urban level, environmental impacts linked to globalization, free trade agreements, the ecological debt, and climatic change. AE has gotten new environmental issues onto the public agenda, confronting and exposing the contradictory interests and proposals of marked inequities with benefits for the few. AE has made public the "other side" of environmental problems, and has often used the strategy of making supposedly secret issues into publicly open secrets. Regarding food security, AE is pursuing strategies to protect domestic agriculture and food sovereignty for small and medium farmers: sovereignty over what they grow, and how they exchange products, with priority for local and national supply.

Objectives

• To inform farmers and marketers about the impact of free trade on agriculture, to understand the importance of protecting domestic agriculture, and the need to be self-sufficient.
• To de-centralize access to information, and use it through participating organizations.
• To design strategies for resistance and pressure against the World Trade Organization and the FTAA, Free Trade Area of the Americas (http://ftaa-alca.org) and bilateral free trade agreements, in order to propose alternative strategies.

Planned outputs

Results of de-centralizing in order to inform the target group:

• Analysis and translation of existing information
• Electronic newsletters (only digital to avoid wasting environmental resources, and because of printing costs)
• Updating the Website with a specific section on the impact of these agreements
• A CD-ROM.
• Radio spots.

Results of de-centralizing information:

Train persons selected from the group of beneficiaries to replicate and distribute the information. Training will involve handling the text processor and spreadsheet, navigating on the Web, using PowerPoint, making CD-ROMs with different resources, and using electronic discussion forums.

Results of designing strategies for resistance and pressure:

• Work with a group of delegates and existing committees to define the position and actions to undertake against the threat of trans-genetic seeds, patent systems, privatization of water resources, clearing of land, and low-cost agricultural imports.
• On-line discussion forums.
• Producing a final document.

Development Impacts

The knowledge base is centered on beneficiaries, and the need for them to intervene in designing strategies to cope with free trade. The project seeks to provide assistance to small and medium farmers as a way of preventing them from losing income.

Management and organisation

The project team is led by two women - the Project Coordinator, and the Technical Assistant / ICT Trainer. They are responsible for developing contents to be publicized through ICTs, and maintain relations with the sectors participating in the work and study group. The two coordinate continually, as part of the Campaign Against Free Trade launched by Acción Ecológica to disseminate information on the impacts of free trade, food sovereignty, energy sovereignty, and support for local and national processes to struggle to defend these rights.

Market and finance

The project’s beneficiary group comprises the main stakeholders from the agricultural sector, NGOs and cooperatives. The project seeks to raise consciousness among interested parties, rather than economic profits. Sustainability is grounded in institutionalizing the project, by laying the foundations within the organization, and methods to use in subsequent campaigns.

Lessons learned

Different participant organizations have different levels of knowledge. It is necessary to adjust to their training needs in terms of their technical realities, human resources, and capacity for action and advocacy.

Budget

The total project budget is $98,190 USD. This budget provides 47% for personnel expenses, 13% for computing hardware and Website design, 4% for training, and the remaining 36% for content-related issues, such as translations, organizing workshops that will use PowerPoint and CD-ROMs as supporting material for project beneficiary groups.

Project Owner : Acción Ecológica

Project Partners :

Project management: Acción Ecológica
Project funder: HIVOS provides funding throughout the project's 18-month duration.

Project Contact : IICD