Guiding Principles
THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF EQUAL AND JUST TRADE
Over 30 yeras ago a number of non-governmental organizations in Holland and
Sweden initiated a new form of cooperation with less industrialised states.
Thanks to the new system, small scale producers could channel more of their
revenue in long term development, particularly in matters concerning economic
development and social justice.
The guiding principles of equal and just trade include the following:
(1) Products and services are acquired directly from cooperative societies that
operate in various sectors such as the agricultural, the textile and the
handicrafts sectors
(2) The ultimate price that the consumer pays should reflect the real production
costs and should guarantee a reasonable profit margin that should be re-invested
in social projects
(3) The price for the acquistion of raw materials should be established
before the goods are delivered
(4) Help should be directed to develop production techniques that respect
the local traditions of the means of production
(5) Esablish long term contracts
(6) The proucts manufactured in these projecst use as much raw material derived from
the counties of origin as possible. Emphasis is also placed on the use of
recyclable raw materials and the use of production technologies that are
enviromently friendy and that respect the local culture. In the case of agricultural
products this calls for the use of oganic-biologic styles of farming.
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