Farmers’ Rights, Voices and Choices Promoted

Oxfam Vietnam recently released a report titled “Understand farmer’s cooperation and linkage in agricultural production to promote farmers’ rights, voices, and choices: Findings and Policy recommendations”. Research conducted by Oxfam and the Institute of Research and Consultancy on Development in three provinces of Vietnam, each of which has regionally specific features of agricultural production and demonstrates market differences, Ninh Binh (representative of the Red River Delta area), Lam Dong (Central Highlands region) and Dong Thap (Mekong Delta region). The report covered 360 households participating in cooperatives and collaborative groups. The Department of Cooperatives and Rural Development under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Coalition for Farmers' Rights and Effectiveness of Vietnamese Agriculture co-organised to launch the report.

 

Promoting sustainable farmers’ cooperation and linkage has been identified as a key policy in the effort of renewing production organisation after a long time encountering inefficiency. Experiences from many countries around the world show that cooperation and linkage, if well organised, will help promote endogenous power of farmers and production efficiency, optimising the use of natural and social resources, thereby ensuring a more equitable benefits and risks sharing among parties.

 

Oxfam’s study confirms that developing cooperative economy is a sound strategy. However, the enactment and enforcement of policies are facing many obstacles and difficulties. Ensuring equitable benefit and risk sharing, understanding actors’ need for cooperation and linkage, especially farmers, to organise effective and sustainable linkage has not been acknowledged and promoted sufficiently. According to statistics, since the enactment of Cooperative Act 2003, the government has issued 143 policies and legal documents on the collective economy. However, the understanding of developing cooperative economy remains inadequate, unable to catch up with development practices. Many introduced policies have yet to promote the fundamental nature and role of farmers' organisations as independent partners in development, while tending to be biased in favour of developing cooperatives over cooperative groups. These policies also overlap and show inefficiency in practice; a “lever” policy that can create breakthroughs is unavailable.

 

The report also shows that linkage through farmers' organisations has been a more preferred trend than direct linkage between farmers and enterprises through economic contracts. It’s also a better choice to ensure the rights and voices of farmers. The model of cooperative groups is growing strongly as a result of farmers’ desire for a linkage within their capacity and needs, which ensures the sharing of common values as well as the fundamental principles of voluntarism, autonomy, independence and transparency. Nearly 75 percent of farmers showed interest in a linkage cooperation which can ensure democratic principles and transparency so that they are entitled to have a say in the decision-making process.

 

According to Oxfam, regional features, conditions of agricultural production as well as determination and vision of local authorities have an influence on the quality of cooperation and linkage. Enterprises wishing to participate effectively in cooperation and linkage need to prepare for long-term cooperation, to design better profit and risk sharing plan, more transparent and efficient pricing schemes to encourage farmers' commitment. Capacity of the management team, operating mechanisms and information transparency are identified as three important factors that can make a difference in farmers’ cooperation and linkage. Meanwhile, market-oriented thinking of the members of farmer organizations and farmers participating in cooperation and linkage are the deciding factor for product quality, as well as the flexibility and adaptability of linkage.

 

Participating in linkage also is said to have positive social influence beside its’ economic impact. 85.6 percent of the respondents confirmed that cooperation and linkage helped enhance solidarity and cohesion in the community, reduce the risk of unfair competition such as price dumping, and improve negotiating capacity in both linkage forms of Cooperative groups and Cooperatives compared to other forms involving less members as well as linkage associating with the consumption of agricultural products through contracts.

 

“Developing cooperation and linkage should derive from practice, from the needs and aspirations as well as farmers’ capability for diverse cooperation and linkage. As for aspiration, farmers have a need for benefit and risk sharing, they want an active role in the process of forming and implementing cooperation and linkage instead of sitting back and accepting any cooperation and linkage models imposed on them. For capacity, farmers should be confidence-boosted, given opportunities to prove their capabilities and support to engage in new partnerships such as with the business sector in the cooperation developing sector’s value chain,” said Ms Nguyen Le Hoa, Representative of Oxfam Vietnam.

 

The report also comments on the future trend of cooperation and linkage and introduces a 16-point recommendation for policy makers’ reference, covering issues from perspective of cooperation and linkage, policies and solutions for decision makers at all levels as well as the role of farmers, farmer organisations and businesses.

 

The report was launched in a critical time when the government is reviewing the policy of promoting cooperative and cooperative economy as well as linkage in the value chain of agricultural products. With information obtained from a detailed and serious study, the report proposes some recommendations for planning agencies and policy enforcement, authorities at all levels, as well as enterprises to help identify, build and support farmers’ cooperation and linkage, aiming at increasing income as well as improving the standing and competitiveness of farmers. The proposal aims to help create positive changes and breakthroughs for the development of farmers’ cooperation and linkage as well as farmer organisations, also to contribute in a sustainable way to the restructuring and innovation of Vietnam’s agriculture.