1 Impediments to Implementation of National Foreign Trade Policy (2004 – 2009): CUTS Findings

2 Area88,752 sq.km. Population (2001) lakhs Female: 387 lakhs; Male: 415 lakhs District19 Sub-Division65 Police Station452 Zilla Parishad18 ; Total Elected Representatives :716 Mahakuma Parishad1 ; Total Elected Representatives : 7 Panchayyats Samity333 ;Total Elected Representatives : 8543 Gram Panchayat3354 ; Total Elected Representatives: Literacy Rate (2001)69.22 per cent.; Male 77.58;Female Agricultural Land58,43,483 Hectares Irrigated Land44.47 per cent Unirrigated Land55.53 per cent

3 Policy Making Process in the context of National Foreign Trade Policy Policies are not made in a single day NFTP involved various rounds of discussion among –The Ministers (Centre and State), –The Bureaucrats, –The Chambers of Commerce, –Trade Bodies, –Trade representatives, –Export Promotion Councils, –Various boards set up for different agricultural products. Board of Trade

4 Policy Making Process in the context of National Foreign Trade Policy………..(contd.) At first a draft paper was formulated based on the whole gamut of government policies, export – import data etc. and circulated among the different stakeholders for their inputs. After getting inputs from the aforementioned stakeholders the policy paper is finalized and implemented. Accordingly the new changes are notified to the relevant departments through Government orders.

5 Some views about the Policy Making process It is very centralized Lacks Grassroot Input It does not address local specifics and variations

6 Some major gaps in the policy making process Decision and discussion on economic and trade related issues mainly take place at the state and district levels but not at the panchayat level - decisions are not taken further down to the Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat. MP/MLA/political parties never discuss economic problems and trade related issues. The small entrepreneurs in the villages, the growers and the cultivators have not been consulted by anyone in the making of NFTP. The Board Of Trade does not have representation of the CSO, small and medium enterprises and women’s organisations

7 Some major gaps in the policy making process…..(contd.) Lack of major export oriented schemes targeted to encourage small and medium entrepreneurs Policies are not aimed at encouraging small and medium entrepreneurship – a majority of the masses are still dependent on subsidies or help from the government. The main reason for the lack of grassroot inputs in the policy making process is the information gap among the grassroot people

8 Major Roadblocks to Effective Policy Implementation Low level of awareness about the different government policies and NFTP in particular Low degree of awareness about Trade and Economic issues at the grassroot No clear idea of grassroot stakeholders about the policy implications of various provisions of NFTP Public – Private – Partnership (PPP) is the major buzzword for making NFTP effective, especially for the Horticulture sector. Unfortunately there is a lack of adequate and effective private participation.

9 Major Roadblocks to Effective Policy Implementation……..(contd.) Conflicting political interests Number of beneficiaries are often greater than the benefits While in some of the districts the local legislators are pro active in promoting export oriented measure, others are averse or unaware of those. According to some exporters the government officials at the local level are not adequately informed about the procedures involved in exporting

10 Recommendation / Advocacy Points Need to create “INFORMED” stakeholders at the grassroot Trainings and supportive policies in favour of the small and medium entrepreneurs to help them to emerge as exporters of major horticulture and / or handloom products Can development be defined independent of politics? Representatives from growers, weavers, peoples representatives, grassroot civil society organizations and media to be involved in Policy making as well as in the policy implementation processes Panchayats should be equipped to deal with queries related to export promotion measures and their implications

11 Recommendations / Advocacy Points…….(contd.) There should be export promotion schemes designed to address not solely the rich farmers or the big business houses but also the poor yet efficient farmers at the grassroot levels. The local media, grassroot civil society organisations should be sensitised to economic realities and trade related issues.

12 Recommendations / Advocacy Points…….(contd.) Government should promote formation of farmer’s co- operatives to enhance their bargaining power as well as ensure better returnes for their produce Policy making process should follow a bottom up approach

13 Role of CSOs Raise a coherent voice on issues lof economic governance Develop grassroot understanding of WTO related issues Contribute to economic literacy at the grasstroot Engage with political parties and elected representatives to strengthen links between local demands and policy makers

14 Role of CSOs……(contd.) Intervene at the state level on issues of economic governance in the state Work hand-in-hand with the government towards better adaptation and implementation of NFTP

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