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Impactt has produced a set of training materials on the development impact of supply chains. ‘Purchasing for People’, funded by the UK Department for International Development (DfID), is now freely available for use. 

You can download a Purchasing for People taster here and the video here (the video is a large file and may take time to download).  Please contact martin@impacttlimited.com to receive a full training pack.

Purchasing for People

Following collaborative work with IIED, NRI and Chris Anstey, funded by DfID, Impactt is pleased to announce the launch of the ‘Purchasing for People’ training materials, funded by the UK Department for International Development (DfID) and follow on from the IIED/NRI /DfID project ‘Small-scale producers and standards in agri-food chains’. The training materials are intended to raise the awareness of buyers and commercial teams about the positive impact their purchasing can have on people in extended supply chains.  The training objectives are:

• To train buyers and commercial teams on their responsibilities in the supply chain.
• To build awareness of how buyers’ decisions can have impacts on people and communities in the developing world.
• To begin to enable buyers to make ‘pro-development’ decisions.

Retailers’ and brands’ purchasing from the developing world plays a significant role in bringing jobs, foreign exchange, and technical expertise to industries based in poor countries.  The links established between retailers/brands and their suppliers and growers in developing countries have the potential to be a powerful developmental tool through:

• increasing the amount and improving the quality of trade flows,
• creating opportunities for inclusion of SMEs in complex supply chains,
• transferring technical knowledge to businesses and workers in the supply chain,
• creating jobs and improving livelihoods for farmers and workers,
• benefitting local communities and economies through the multiple spill-over effects of export trade.

Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the broad-reaching power of their purchasing decisions; “74% of adults in Great Britain think they can help reduce poverty in the developing world through their shopping choices, compared to 65% who believe that occasionally donating to charity is the most effective action they can take.” The Fairtrade Foundation reports consumer recognition of the brand at above 70%.  Whilst the importance of the Fairtrade brand as a trailblazer in setting the agenda for pro-poor trade cannot be overstated, there is a need to raise buyers’ awareness of the development effects of conventional, non-Fairtrade branded goods.  The training materials encourage buyers, brands and retailers to identify and increase the developmental benefits of conventional supply chains.

International Development Minister Gareth Thomas has challenged businesses to prove their development credentials by seeking to increase their influence in the developing world, “Buying from developing countries makes clear business sense – not only are you sourcing quality products that compete on price, but you are also meeting the increasing consumer thirst to buy ethically… Industry buyers have a powerful choice – to make what they buy work for or against the developing world. Retailers are increasingly playing their part … but we can go further.”

We hope that the training materials will help to push the debate further.   The Purchasing for People training materials have been tested by Tesco and by the Cooperative are freely available to use, either as a stand-alone training module, or as part of existing buyer training.  They include a programme outline, powerpoint slides and video material covering:

• Stakeholder expectations
• The business case
• Making a difference in the Supply Chain
• Negative effects in the Supply Chain?
• Next Steps for Buyers

For a copy of the full material or to discuss integrating ‘Purchasing for People‘ into your existing ethical trade training programme, please contact Martin Buttle: martin@impacttlimited.com or leave a message below.

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The 2008, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and National Resources Institute (NRI) project entitled ‘Small Scale Producers and Standards in AgriFood Supply Chains’, identified the need for training for retailers on their development impacts. The outputs from the project are available in a book entitled “Standard bearers: Horticultural exports and private standards in Africa”   UK Public Survey commissioned by Department for International Development (DfID) Dec 2007 Latest research commissioned by the Fairtrade Foundation and launched to coincide with World Fair Trade Day on Saturday 10 May, shows more UK consumers than ever before Gareth Thomas, 11th March 2008