One of the key Fair Trade movement demands in the 2014 European Parliament elections was for the EC to put in place a strategy to ensure an enabling EU policy environment for the uptake of Fair Trade, across the most relevant policies (e.g. trade, development). Detailed Fair Trade movement demands were laid down in the FTAO position paper An innovative EU approach in support of Fair Trade practices in the new EU Trade and Investment Strategy, issued in the summer of 2015.
After the setting up of the new College of Commissioners, the Fair Trade movement engaged with the then-newly appointed EU Trade Commissioner, Cecilia Malmström. Commissioner Malmström received favourably the proposals from the Fair Trade movement. As a result, and line with the new EU Trade Commissioner's agenda to EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström & Chair of the European Parliament Development Committee and Fair Trade
Working Group Linda McAvan on 14 October 2015 addressed sustainability in global value chains, the EC issued its blueprint for a new EU Trade Strategy “Trade for All” which, for the first time, includes a section on “Fair and Ethical Trade”. This section, while falling short of the full-fledged European Strategy for Fair Trade that the Fair Trade movement had called for, lays down various specific commitments to promote the uptake of Fair Trade practices. This was a great achievement of the Fair Trade movement and the Project looks forward to contributing to the implementation of these commitments in 2016.
Read the full report to learn more.