Asia Fair Trade Summit 2018

22 - 25 November 2018, Kathmandu, Nepal

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Registration for Asia Fair Trade Summit 2018 – Fair trade, a path to sustainable development is now open. To checkout further details about the summit and to register, please visit World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO) – Asia website here and refer to attached the programme sheet and as well as the brief description of the summit below (from the WFTO-Asia website).

The Asia Fair Trade Summit 2018 is WFTO Asia’s 11^th Biennial Conference. The conference is taking place from 22-25 November, 2018 at the Park Village Resort in Kathmandu, Nepal and is jointly organised by WFTO Asia and Fair Trade Group  Nepal (FTGN). It is Asia’s largest gathering of Fair Trade Organisations, government representatives, certifying bodies, and buyers to exchange best practices in the Fair Trade supply chain. The theme of this year’s conference is Fair Trade: A Path to Sustainable Development. The summit will include workshops by representatives of the WFTO network and other organisations who specialise in areas ranging from gender, living wage, product design, impact measurements, and more.

Purpose/Objective

Fair Trade is important in the fight to promote sustainable development for 3 significant reasons:

First, the 10 Principles of Fair Trade have been developed to benefit the most vulnerable sectors of society and nurture sustainable livelihoods for disadvantaged communities. Our guiding mantra is “leave no one behind.” Second, the Fair Trade movement has acted to encourage a more sustainable way of conducting trade. Sustainability is a necessary alternative to conventional trade, which disrupts the relationship between people and the environment. Third, the Fair Trade movement has given legitimacy to global demands for a fair and sustainable economy.

In line with these, the objectives of the Asia Fair Trade Summit 2018 are to:

Continue to promote Fair Trade as a growing movement and platform in Asia to engage multisector stakeholders (civil society, academia and the public and private sectors) in holistic collaboration towards sustainable development goals.

Exchange best practices in Fair Trade and promote shared economic and social values in Asia as contributors towards poverty reduction within the region and beyond.

Promote emerging Fair Trade markets to support sustainable supply chain practices that foster connections between buyers and producers.