Africa Now - 'Enabling the poor to enjoy the fruits''
With your help, TRAID had donated £50,000 to the innovative charity Africa Now to assist 30,000 low-income factory workers and vulnerable small holder farmers across Kenya to gain a secure income and build a better life. The project will last for three years and work begins in January 2010.
By improving understanding and relations between factory workers and their supervisors, and training management on how to meet core labour standards, 25,000 low-income workers are set to gain safer and more secure employment.
Africa Now will also work with 5,000 small-scale tea, coffee and vegetable farmers, supporting them to get a fair price for their hard work whilst protecting their environment through gaining Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance certification.
Outputs from the project are expected to be far reaching and life changing and include:
Textile Factories
- 600 personnel trained in better supervisory skills & internationally recognised core labour standards and relevant Kenyan labour laws.
- 25,000 low-income workers provided with secure employment meeting ethical standards around UN conventions on labour rights.
- 30 factories establish labour management committees and other workplace frameworks for dialogue.
Smallholder farmers
- 5 tea and coffee co-operatives and an additional 5 groups of smallholder vegetable farmers receive Fairtrade and/or Rainforest Alliance Certification.
- At least 10 community projects are prioritised by farmers and workers, and set up using funds from the accrual of fair trade premiums.
- 5,000 small farmers showing increased revenue from sales of Fairtrade certified tea, coffee and fresh produce.
TRAID will update the website regularly with project news and developments. To find out more visit Africa Now www.africanow.org
