The 2024 annual report of the Trade for Development Centre (TDC), an Enabel program, illustrates its actions to support African producers, promote sustainable trade, and responsible consumption. It highlights concrete initiatives that combine social justice, environmental sustainability, and economic capacity building.
Supporting African producers
In 2024, the TDC organized data collection training sessions for 15 coffee, cocoa, and cashew nut producer cooperatives. During these business reviews, organizations gain a more in-depth understanding of their mission, operations, finances, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aspects of their business, and their market position, enabling them to make better decisions. These preliminary training sessions are the first step in a three-year support program in one of the following areas: financial and organizational management, marketing, or respect for human rights and the environment.
At the same time, thanks to grants of up to €90,000, ten cooperatives have been selected to implement ambitious projects. The objectives? To reduce the gap between household income and a living wage, promote sustainable agricultural practices such as agroecology, and adapt cooperatives to the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EDR).
Increase the impact
To multiply its impact, the TDC supports business support organizations (BSOs) to strengthen their capacity to support local SMEs. A selection of 8 BSOs will receive grants of up to €50,000 per project between 2025 and 2027, while five others will participate in a coaching program. The objective is to provide BSOs with the knowledge and tools needed to help local businesses export to the EU in a sustainable manner that respects human rights and decent work.
Sharing expertise
In 2024, the TDC shared its expertise at the World Cocoa Conference, notably on a pilot project to calculate the income gap within households in the Yeyasso cooperative in Côte d’Ivoire. The center of expertise also moderated discussions at the “Chocolate & Beyond” event in Rome, which focused on sustainable value chains in the cocoa sector. Finally, the TDC is integrated into the second national action plan “Business and Human Rights,” as action 19, to support market access for sustainable producers.
Awareness and advocacy
In Africa, campaigns such as the National Ecological Agriculture Week (SNAE) in Benin have helped strengthen dialogue between producers, local authorities, and economic stakeholders. These initiatives are not trivial: they build bridges, open discussions, and build alliances.
At the other end of the supply chain, raising awareness about responsible consumption is also central to the TDC’s mission. The Fair Trade Week, a flagship event in Belgium, brought together tens of thousands of participants for 115 inspiring and educational activities. From interactive workshops to engaging debates, every moment was an opportunity to reflect on the challenges of responsible consumption. The media followed suit and covered the initiatives 242 times in the press.
In terms of advocacy, the TDC worked to put fair trade on the political agenda by contributing to a memorandum for the 2024 elections, while the Meet your Buyer initiative in Brussels connected fair trade suppliers and public procurement officials.
