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Traidcraft Exchange’s Sustainable Livelihoods for Poor Producers (SLIPP) project will provide employment opportunities for some of the poorest rural communities in Northern Bangladesh and increase income for individual workers who are struggling to achieve a decent income. SLIPP will work in the Mymensingh and Netrokona regions, where there are limited employment opportunities, often with poor working conditions. Small businesses offer the hope of employment, a fair wage and sometimes additional welfare services, but often find it difficult to remain economically viable and require access to business support. This project will result in improved management and marketing, leading in turn to increased income and more sustainable livelihoods.
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We carried out market research to identify the sectors we should concentrate on for maximum impact during the SLIPP project. Vegetable cultivation, fish-farming and duck-rearing were chosen. Small businesses sometimes lack the vital business skills they need to achieve improved financial performance and find new markets for their products. To address these needs, over the five year term of the project we will: 1. Train 60 local business support organisations to provide services to 1200 small businesses, thereby creating a network of local expertise, and helping to improve businesses’ performance. This represents superb value for money because our ‘training of trainers’ methodology ensures the benefits of our work are multiplied many times over. Each of the 1200 business employs an average of 5 producers. With an average family size of 4.7, this means the project will have immediately benefited 28,200 people. 2. Facilitate lobbying and advocacy work with policy-makers to ensure that current legislation is implemented and that the new policies developed are supportive to small businesses and take into account the needs of the poor. This will also empower the poor to demand their rights to, for example, a fair price, a fair wage, decent living and working conditions, access to healthcare and other essential social services. 3. Strengthen the capacity of small businesses and poor producers to work collectively and collaboratively. By working collectively, small businesses can share the costs of buying business inputs and accessing markets. They can also negotiate more effectively with potential buyers.