quarterly newsletter of ecota fair trade forum - eftfbd.orgeftfbd.org/bookfile/2013090417.pdf ·...
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Quarterly Newsletter of ECOTA Fair Trade Forum
Welcome to ECOTA Fair Trade
Forum’s Newsletter! We are
really proud and honored to
have you in the long passage of
ECOTA since 1990’s. Over two
decades ECOTA has been
carrying and visualizing the
importance of Fair Trade and
struggling to uplift the income
generation of the poor
artisans, producers’ through
the member organizations of
ECOTA. It not only changes the
economic condition of the
marginal artisans of our
country but also symbolizes
our culture, tradition through
local handicraft and textile
sector. Through this long
passage, ECOTA tried to
acquaint its members,
associates and all the admirers
with a good number of
projects, workshops, seminars,
t r a i n i n g , a d v o c a c y ,
campaigning on handicraft
sector of Bangladesh. We have
your continuous support and
comfort in our unforgettable
memories, achievements and
in our sorrows and struggles
that gave us the momentum to
work for the Fair Trade! ECOTA
did not put an end to its
movement for fighting against
poverty through Fair Trade.
After a short interval, we are
hoping to present some event
as an ice break up. Here we
are to cherish you with some
fresh news to make you more
optimistic and dynamic thinker.
The Celebration of World Fair
Trade Day 2012, some effective
experience sharing seminar
update information, news on
present implementing project
titled “Establishing and
Enhancing a Sustainable South-
South Fair Trade Partnership”
supporting by Fredskorpset-
Norway and some moments
with foreign delegations of Fair
Trade Hong Kong Foundation
expect to give you the essence
of social movement. We are
also proud to get the chance to
news on our artisans, producer
groups that we located in
“Members’ Corner: My
Organization”
We have done exercise on our
strategic planning with the
participation of members with
enthusiasm. The report is
under process. I must thank my
friends and colleagues in the
present board of ECOTA. They
are providing their time,
positive thinking. I would also
like to be thankful to general
members of ECOTA for their
contribution. However, in the
context of Bangladesh, we
need to do more advocacies
and campaign work to promote
Fair Trade.
Finally, I would like to greatly
r e m e m b e r L a t e M r .
Mohammad Islam for his
contribution as a pioneer of
ECOTA, first Fair Trade country
network in the globe.
Shah Abdus Salam
Chair Person
Ecota Fair Trade Forum
Message from the Chair Person
ECOTA Fair Trade Forum
June 2012
Volume 1, Issue 1
World Fair Trade Day Celebration, May 13, 2012
2
ECOTA Executive Committee Members for 2011
2
ECOTA attended the seminar on " Exploring handicrafts- home textiles and Leather goods through Mega Show-2 in Hong Kong and Exploring Bangladesh Apparel in Europe through Asia Apparel Expo in Berlin Germany" on 26th of June 2012 at Sonargaon Hotel organized by Lord Incorporate.
2
Ten members delegation from Fair Trade Hong Kong
3
Korea Visit by Mr. Monjurul Haque, Artisan Hut
3
Home Coming Seminar for Participants of Fredskorpset-
4
Workshop on “Strategic Planning of ECOTA Fair Trade Forum”
4
New Members of ECOTA Family 5
Upcoming Events: World Fair
Trade Organization ASIA
Conference” Goa, India
6
Members’ Corner: My
Organization
6
Inside this issue:
“ECOTA is the National
Network of Fair Trade
Organizations in
Bangladesh”
Bangladesh has celebrated its journey of World Fair Trade
Day 2012. ECOTA Fair Trade Forum organized seminar with
the School students on May 13, 2012 at Dhaka YWCA
School & College, Dhaka. I want Fair World; I Support Fair
Trade- is the
theme of
t h i s
Celebration
Day. ECOTA
took the
privilege to
disseminate
the message
of the Fair
Trade to the
young generation those who will one day guide the
movement of Fair Trade. Mr. Shah Abdus Salam,
Chairperson of EFTF, chaired the seminar and speaker of
the theme was Ms. Bertha Gity Baroi, Vice Chairperson of
EFTF. Mr. U Thein Maung, Treasurer of EFTF. Mr.
Mustafizul Islam, BRAC Aarong, Ms. Shefali
Halder, Prokritee, Mr. Christopher Sarker,
OASIS Transformation Ltd, Ms. Rina Bishwas,
YWCA Craft Centre and Ms. Bashobi Halder,
Assistant General Secretary of Dhaka YWCA
were also present there as guest speakers in
the seminar. Mr. Milton Suranjit Ratna,
Development Manager of CORR the Jute
Work, facilitated the seminar. It is worth
mentioning that, our hearts of program: the
a r t i s a n s , p r o d u c e r s ,
entrepreneurs, social thinkers
and the students enriched and
encouraged very much by their
valuable presence. The
honorable guests convey their
messages and finally the
seminar end up with the
conclusion of arranging a
cultural show by presenting a
drama on Fair Trade by the
women artisans of CORR – The
Jute Works. There was a Fair
Trade product show on the
campus ground. The students
and their parents rushed to
purchase the crafts. They also
proclaimed their support to Fair
Trade.
Handicrafts to achieve business opportunities
for international buyers and Asian
manufacturers. In this regard, Kenfair
Exhibition (Hong Kong) Limited took initiatives
to organize an exhibition- Mega Show 2012
Part 2 that will be held from October 27
through October 29, 2012 at Hong Kong
Convention & Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) 1
Expo Drive, Wanchai, Hong Kong, S.A.R. And
“Asia Apparel Expo BERLIN Messe Berlin, 19-
21 February 2013 at Messe Berlin Exhibition
ECOTA attended the seminar on "
Exploring handicrafts- home textiles
and Leather goods through Mega
Show-2 in Hong Kong and Exploring
Bangladesh Apparel in Europe through
Asia Apparel Expo in Berlin Germany"
on 26th of June 2012 at Sonargaon
Hotel organized by Lord Incorporate.
The seminar mainly focused on
promoting office Supplies, stationery,
home decor products, Gifts & Grounds, Berlin, Germany, Hall 11.1 & Hall 17
World Fair Trade Day Celebration, May 13, 2012
Seminar on “Mega Show-2 in Hong Kong” and “Exploring Bangladesh Apparel in Europe through Asia Apparel Expo in Berlin Germany”.
• Ms. Tanu Dey, Member
• Ms.Shahnaj Parveen, Member
The present Executive Committee Members
was selected by the General Body of ECOTA
on the Annual General Meeting that was
held on 29th of October 2011. Right now
the Executive Committee is focusing on
taking preparation for participating the
World Fair Trade Organization Asia
Conference 2012, Goa India; Strategic
Planning of ECOTA; Self Assessment
Report of ECOTA and current initiatives
under FK-Norway project.
Members of Executive Committee for 2011-2013
• Mr. Shah Abdus Salam, Chair Person
• Ms. Bertha Gity Baroi, Vice Chair Person
• Mr. U Thein Maung, Treasurer
• Mr. Monjurul Haque, Member
• Ms. Khadija Sultana, Member
• Mr. Subrata Saha, Member
Page 2 Quarter ly Newslet ter o f ECOTA Fa ir Trade Forum Volume 1, I ssue 1
Korea Visit Program, Mr. Monjurul Haque, Artisan Hut
Ten members delegation from “Fair Trade Hong Kong”
This is going to be a great prospect to
promote our traditional Handicrafts and
home textile in the world market. We
hope the participation in Hong Kong Mega
Show 2- Asian Home Textile Zone and Asia
Apparel Expo BERLIN will be a real
platform for us to promote our members
to increase their export. In this regard, the
Exhibitor reserved attractive offerings
for booth reservation.
For more details, you can visit
www.asiaapparelexpo.com www.mega-
show.com
learn that Fair Trade Hong
Kong Foundation advocates
Fair Trade in different sectors
of the society such as-Fair
Trade Partnership Program
encourages corporations, non-
profit organizations, schools,
individuals and students to join
them and work together to
promote Fair Trade in Hong
Kong. ECOTA may consider
having the opportunity to
create Fair Trade Event by
promoting Fair Trade Tourism,
Fair Trade as a Social
Movement, Internship program
on experience sharing of
Design Experts between ECOTA
and other countries.
The meeting summed up with
s o m e e n t h u s i a s t i c
conversations of new hope and
future planning to take ECOTA
in its right direction.
It is ECOTA’s pleasure to have
the opportunity to spend some
moments with Fair Trade Hong
Kong Foundation on 27th of
June 2012 at ECOTA
Secretariat. Mr. Shah Abdus
Salam, Chair Person of ECOTA
and Mr. Milton Suranjit Ratna,
Development Manager of
CORR the Jute Work hosted the
ten delegates of the respective
organization. Fair Trade Hong
Kong Foundation (formerly
known as Fair Trade Hong
Kong) was founded in January
2008 in Hong Kong, later
incorporated into a private
company limited by guarantee,
and registered as a charitable
organization in October 2010.
ECOTA and its Member
Organizations were happy to
TV Channels. The idea of the
Fair Trade was quite
innovative for the Korean and
gave them the keen interest
to work in this field. This is
indeed a very encouraging for
the Fair Trade practitioner of
Bangladesh.
During visit to Korea, Mr.
Monjurul Haque got the
opportunity to share the
knowledge on Fair Trade
practice with the Korean
people. It was also very
enthusiastic to learn that the
sharing program was
telecasted on some Korean
ECOTA and its Member
Organizations were
happy to learn that Fair
Trade Hong Kong
Foundation advocates..
Page 3 Quarter ly Newslet ter o f ECOTA Fa ir Trade Forum Volume 1, I ssue 1
Workshop on “Strategic Planning of ECOTA Fair Trade Forum”
Home Coming Seminar for Participants under Fredskorpset-Norway Project
home country send out six participants of
ECOTA’s Member Organization- DEW, TSDS,
Prokritee, SEDS and NRDS to Nepal and
India.
Accordingly, for the 2011-12 Phase, ECOTA
selected three participants from
Development Wheel, Socio-Economic
Development Society and Prokritee who
had received training on ‘Retail Outlet
Coordination’ & ‘Handmade Paper
Technology’. To disseminate the acquired
knowledge and share the experience on
that particular issue the respective
participants delivered a power-point
presentation on the homecoming
seminar that held on 7th of July 2012
at ECOTA secretariat, 6/4 A (Ground
Floor), Sir Syed Ahmed Road
Mohammadpur, Dhaka-1207. Mr. Shah
Abdus Salam, Chair Person, had
chaired the program. Ms. Bertha Gity
Baroi, Vice Chairperson, Mr. U Thein
Maung, Treasurer, Ms. Tanu Dey,
Member and the delegates of the
member organizations were present in
that seminar.
ECOTA Fair Trade Forum is successfully
implementing the project entitle
“Establishing and Enhancing a Sustainable
South-South Fair Trade Partnership” with
the support of Fredskorpset- Norway from
the year of 2008. The project involves
exchange of participants between Fair
Trade Group Nepal, Fair Trade Forum-
India, and ECOTA Fair Trade Forum to
transfer knowledge and skill on Crafts
Process and techniques, and Crafts
Marketing and promotion. ECOTA as a
host country received four participants
from Fair Trade Group Nepal and as a
the workshop on Strategic
Planning of ECOTA that was held on July
14, 2012 at ECOTA Secretariat at 6/4A, Sir
Syed Ahmed Road, Mohammadpur,
Dhaka-1207. Mr. U Thein Maung,
Treasurer of ECOTA facilitated the
It is great news for all of our
members to be concerned about
the Designing structure of ECOTA.
“Where would we like to visualize
ECOTA” and “How can we help
ECOTA reach to the destination”
encouraged us to think through
workshop. The Chair Person of the organization
and all the Executive Committee Members, the
Executive Directors and the delegates of the
member organizations’ invaluable presence
made the whole programme noteworthy to
take an effective decision for future planning.
Page 4 Quarter ly Newslet ter o f ECOTA Fa ir Trade Forum Volume 1, I ssue 1
New Members of ECOTA Family
In last two years, we are fortunate to have six organizations those who had shown their keen interest to join in our family. Let us
have a look on details-
Page 5 Quarter ly Newslet ter o f ECOTA Fa ir Trade Forum Volume 1, I ssue 1
Sl.No. Name of the Organization Brief Notes of the organization
01. ADORE ADORE was formed in 1992, as a development organization, to work in the south-west part
of Bangladesh, particularly in greater Khulna district. They provide services covering the area
of Khulna Metro City & 3 Upazilas (sub-districts) under Khulna district. ADORE has established
a training & production center named AROMVI (to begin) in the heart of Khulna metro city.
Generally, AROMVI provides all sorts of need based skill development training like;
handicrafts, sewing, embroidery, screen-printing, fashion designing, snacks & confectionery
items preparation etc.
02. Baby Smile Baby Smile started its journey in 1998. As a Fashion Design and manufacturing company, they
mainly produce cotton wear for children (0-13), women, men’s wear and household items.
The geographical coverage of the Handicraft Programme is in Manikganj, Tangail, Jamalpur,
Madhobi, Demra and Dhaka district. The organization has approx. 60 indirect beneficiaries
who are involved with weaving, designing, etc. The organization has four (4) showrooms in
different shopping complexes of Dhaka city such as- Rapa Plaza, Metro Plaza, Boshundhora
City Shopping Complex and in Banani named “Smile”.
03. Gandhi Ashram Trust Gandhi Ashram Trust started their journey in 1947. Gandhi Ashram Trust is rooted with the
‘Peace Mission’ of Mahatma Gandhi immediate after the communal riot in 1946 at Noakhali
district. Gandhi Ashram is working in Noakhali, Lakshmipur, Feni and Comilla district of
Bangladesh. There are a number of 63 producers under “Center for Handicrafts & Alternative
Research on Khadi – CHARKA” unit where they are producing mainly different designed cloth
and Khadi (a hand woven indigenous cotton cloth of Bangladesh). They also produce
different products from Khadi and weaved cloth. The production range per year is 8000 to
12,000 meter.
04. MOTIF LTD. Motif Ltd. as a Joint Venture Private Limited Company was established in 1998. Motif Ltd. is
working in Mymenshing, Manikganj, Jessore Tangail and Gazipur district of Bangladesh. New
ranges of hand woven table linens, embroidered bags, tailored bathrobes, slippers and many
other accessories. A total number of 110 producers are involved in this organization.
05. Oasis Transformation
Limited
Oasis Transformation Limited is situated in 2008 under EPZ (located at Uttara of Dhaka city).
It is a transformational business, based in Nilphamari district of Bangladesh. The organization
started operational activities with international trading in 2009. They have also a final
processing plant in Nilphamari Export Processing Zone and a pre-processing unit within
bamboo community at Nilphamari. They export in UK and Netherlands. The production
ranges of this organization are urn (a kind of basket) and bamboo made coffin such as
Bamboo Coffin, Willow Coffin and Seagrass Coffin. Approximate 100 producers are involved
with this respective organization.
06. Swajan Crafts Swajan Crafts is a manufacturing and 100% exporting company of indigenous handicrafts of
Bangladesh. Swajan crafts was established in 1999. Swajan works with 850 handicraft
producers and all of them are woman. The organization has ten production centers in kalaiya,
Bogi, Basbaria, Baharampur (in Patuakhali district), Birisiri, Kalmakanda, Durgapur (in
Netrokona district), Badda -1, Badda-2 (in Dhaka) and Tongi in Gazipur district. They export in
UK, USA, Canada, Netherlands, Japan, Italy, France and Australia.
Upcoming Events: World Fair Trade Organization ASIA Conference” Goa, India
• Venue: Bogmallo Beach Resort, Goa India,
• Arrival and registration: 9th October, 2012
• Conference and AGMs: 10-12th October, 2012
• Departure or producers visits: 13th October, 2012
The ASIA Conference is knocking at
the door! The Conference is going
to be held from 10-12 October
2012 at Bogmailo Beach Resort,
Goa, India.
“Make this your Fair Trade
trip treat, share your sights
in the discussion and enjoy
GOA’s white sand beaches
and cenery!”
Members’ Corner: My Organization
In this section, from next volume onwards and with your collaboration and cooperation, we would love to present the profile of
Member Organizations of ECOTA. Would you like to be featured? Send us an email through [email protected]
We would love to feature our Member Organizations’ special event to our Newsletter.
Editorial Board:
Shah Abdus Salam, Bertha Gity Baroi,
U Thein Maung, Khadija Sultana & Tanu Dey
Reported by:
Angela Malakar
Published by:
ECOTA Fair Trade Forum
Address
6/4 A, Sir Syed Ahmed Road,
Mohammadpur, Dhaka-1207
Find us on the web:
www.eftfbd.org
Tel: +88-02-8126593, 9110451
Cell: +88-01742310425
Email: [email protected]
National Network of Fair Trade Organizations
in Bangladesh
ECOTA Fair Trade Forum
Page 6 Quarter ly Newslet ter o f ECOTA Fa ir Trade Forum Volume 1, I ssue 1
P o w e r e d b y : w w w . a u t h e n t i c s o f t . n e t