African Businesswomen Get Help Fashioning Futures – But Still Not Export Ready

An article that appeared in the LA Times last week, and in the Chicago Tribune’s Business section today, touts a recent visit by 47 African women entrepreneurs who came to the U.S. as part of a program by the State Department aimed at helping African countries build their economies and rely less on U.S. aid.

Having worked with women artisans in African countries directly now for several years, it’s always exciting to see any program that helps a woman develop and grow her business. Programs like these are especially useful and informative when the programs highlight specific trade agreements that can help get the products export-ready and cost less to export for the importer (for example, the article specifically covers the African Growth and Opportunity Act – or AGOA for those us of who need to know the term) but it doesn’t cover another very important trade agreement between the United States and many other countries (not specifically African countries but it does benefit those countries as well: the Generalized Systems Preference or GSP).

Most of us, as consumers, would never hear of these, or any other, trade agreements and yet they affect almost everything we buy in the United States that we import. I hope the program organizers stressed the importance of keeping up to date with those trade agreements as not only do they vary among countries, but they are among the many things any exporter needs to know to become “export-ready”.

I’ve covered this topic before on the blog, the fact the importing, much fun as it is to work directly with our artisan partners in developing countries, is not fraught with many challenges. The trade agreements and importing, in general, are among them. It really really really helps when the artisans, on their side of the pond, are as export-ready as possible, making sure they have all of their paperwork correct, organized and AVAILABLE so when it leaves their country, the country officials will let it leave the country. And, when we are bringing our shipments into the U.S., our U.S. Customs broker and freight forwarders have what they need to show U.S. Customs officials to get the green light and release our shipments.

Sound glamours, eh? Yea, it’s about as glamorous as that. But, truth be told, importing can be a lot of fun and very exciting because we really do get to see some amazing things in these countries – things we just don’t see in the U.S.

I’m proud to be an importer and work with these amazingly talented women artisans in developing countries. It’s exciting to see these programs in place and, hopefully, as they continue to grow the program and reach out to more African women entrepreneurs, we’ll see even more great things coming out of those countries!

~Megy

Who Is Mary Kom?

Who is Mary Kom? In a world where men’s physical strength is valued, it’s very exciting to see a woman like Mary Kom get some recognition for her amazing talents. Great piece on her in the current issue of The Economist.

~Megy

The Invisible War – in Theaters June 22

Most of the time I reserve this space to talk about issues pertaining to women in developing countries. But the reality is that dangerous and brutal actions are done against women all over the world and much of it goes unnoticed for a variety of reasons. I hope The Invisible War, a film set to open in theaters around the country on June 22, will help shed light to a very real reality for women in the military.

From Oscar^®– and Emmy^®-nominated filmmaker Kirby Dick (This Film Is Not Yet Rated; Twist of Faith) comes The Invisible War, a groundbreaking investigation about one of America’s most shameful and best kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. The film paints a startling picture of the extent of the problem—today, a female soldier in combat zones is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire. The Department of Defense estimates there were a staggering 19,300 service members sexually assaulted in 2010 alone.

Focusing on the powerfully emotional stories of rape victims, The Invisible War is a moving indictment of the systemic cover-up of military sex crimes, chronicling the women’s struggles to rebuild their lives and fight for justice. It also features hard-hitting interviews with high-ranking military officials and members of Congress that reveal the perfect storm of conditions that exist for rape in the military, its long-hidden history, and what can be done to bring about much-needed change.

At the core of the film are often heartrending interviews with the rape survivors themselves—people like Kori Cioca, who was beaten and raped by her supervisor in the U.S. Coast Guard; Ariana Klay, a Marine who served in Iraq before being raped by a senior officer and his friend, then threatened with death; and Trina McDonald who was drugged and raped repeatedly by military policemen on her remote Naval station in Adak, Alaska. And it isn’t just women; according to one study’s estimate, one percent of men in the military— nearly 20,000 men —were reportedly sexually assaulted in 2009.

And while rape victims in the civilian world can turn to an impartial police force and judicial system for help and justice, rape victims in the military must turn to their commanders—a move that is all too often met with foot-dragging at best, and reprisals at worst. Many rape victims find themselves forced to choose between speaking up and keeping their careers. Little wonder that only eight percent of military sexual assault cases are prosecuted.

The Invisible War exposes the epidemic of sexual assault in the military – one of the most under-reported stories of our generation, a story the filmmakers are proud to be breaking to the nation and the world.  They hope the film will help lead a national dialogue about the crime of rape perpetrated on the very people who have pledged to protect our country and are gratified to see the film is already making an impact. Since it premiered at Sundance, the film has been circulating through the highest levels of the Pentagon and the administration. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta watched The Invisible War on April 14.  Two days later, he directed military commanders to hand over all sexual assault investigations to a higher-ranking colonel.

At the same time, Panetta announced that each branch of the armed forces would establish a  Special Victims Unit.  While these are promising first steps, much more needs to be done.

To that end, The Invisible War is a call for our civilian and military leadership to listen.  And to act.

 

World Day Against Child Labor – June 12, 2012

When you choose fair trade, you essentially celebrate World Day Against Child Labor every day.

I find it sad that a day like this needs to be recognized because the reality is that child labor exists every single day and hour.  This year the World Day Against Child Labor will provide a spotlight on the right of all children to be protected from child labor and from other violations of fundamental human rights. In 2010 the international community adopted a Roadmap for achieving the elimination of the worst forms of child labour by 2016 (it can be downloaded by clicking on the link) which stressed that child labor is an impediment to children’s rights and a barrier to development. World Day Against Child Labor 2012 will highlight the work that needs to be done to make the roadmap a reality.

The International Labor Organization’s (ILO) Conventions seek to protect children from exposure to child labou. Together with other international instruments relating to children’s, workers’ and human rights, they provide an important framework for legislation established by national governments. However the ILO’s most recent global estimate is that 215 million children worldwide are involved in child labor, with more than half this number involved in its worst forms. The children concerned should be at school being educated and acquiring skills that prepare them for decent work as adults. By entering the labor market prematurely, they are deprived of this critical education and training that can help to lift them, their families and communities out of a cycle of poverty. In its worst forms, child laborers may also be exposed to physical, psychological or moral suffering that can cause long term damage to their lives.

One we in which we can support the END TO CHILD LABOR is to SUPPORT FAIR TRADE. No child labor is used in the production of fair trade goods whether those items are chocolate, coffee, jewelry, clothing or gifts. Ensuring children’s rights is one of the principles of fair trade, both of the Fair Trade Federation and the World Fair Trade Organization.

Children need to be in school, not in the fields. What are you doing today to celebrate World Day Against Child Labor?

~Megy