International Banana Conference
From April 28-30, 2005 in Brussels, Belgium, the IUF will co-organise a major international conference to bring together all players in the industry around the theme of "Reversing the race to the bottom".
I. Objectives:
In the light of the crisis affecting the sector since 1999, the scheduled changes to EU banana import policy in 2006 and its potential devastating impacts for both ACP and non-ACP producers and workers, and in the perspective of the possible end of ACP tariff preferences by 2008, the Coordinadora Latinoamericana de Sindicatos Bananeros (COLSIBA), the Association of Caribbean Farmers (WINFA), the European Banana Action Network (EUROBAN), International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Tobacco & Allied Workers� (IUF), and United States Labor Education in the Americas Project (US/LEAP) propose an International Banana Conference in Brussels in April/May 2005 with the following objectives :
Secure commitments by governments and banana companies to respect/enforce labour and trade union rights and standards for workers in all producing countries
Secure commitments by marketing companies to fair remuneration for small producers and plantation workers
Place the specific needs of women workers and small farmers firmly on the international agenda
Explore mechanisms to control over-production and to stabilise prices
Elaborate a definition of a �fair price�
Analyse the implications of changes in the structure of the chain (notably the growing power of the supermarkets)
Propose viable measures for an EU-25 banana import regime that favours sustainable production and fair trade
Secure better protection of the working, living and natural environment
Analyse the impact to date � and discuss the future role � of the voluntary labour and environmental standards initiatives
Create a permanent mechanism/forum in which to continue dialogue (and/or negotiations) between the different actors