1. Is the Stage Set for Mainstreaming Trade into National Development Strategy of India? Pramod Dev M Policy Analyst, Cuts International

2. Concept of Mainstreaming Trade into National Development Strategy Process of integrating trade policies and priority areas of action within the overall national development plan or strategy A process of bargaining among key stakeholders and establishing a correct balance between trade liberalisation and companion policies. Approaches can take place at three levels- Policy, institutional and government-donor relations. Source: Taufiqur Rahman (2004), Concepts and Approaches to Mainstreaming Trade

3. Objective of the study Go beyond impact analysis of trade and enquire about the prevailing conditions for mainstreaming trade into national development strategy. To understand the benefit deficits in globalisation and liberalisation. Why is there a pattern for winners and losers, especially in a participatory democracy? How do the political and economic decision chains work? How inclusive and responsive the processes are? Hence the analysis of demand for and supply of support policies and programs forms the basic frame work for this study

4. Trade Policy Making in India Marred in secrecy - limited or selective public consultation Decisions taken by small group of officials with out enough prior political consultation Process is still top-down and not in a position to factor in ground realities. Influence of vulnerable agricultural stakeholders limited due to their capacities and lack of organisation. Though the consultation processes have been initiated, inclusiveness is still an issue.

5. Methodology of the study Rajasthan and West Bengal as indicated by the project proposal. Agriculture sector was selected for its economic, political and social importance within the country. Impact of globalisation and liberalisation are most noticeable in livelihoods and economic security in the agriculture sector. Sectoral analysis deemed desirable as the mainstreaming process could vary across sectors.

6. Field Research Field research was conducted in three phases among three broad stakeholder groups like: Peoples’ representatives and political functionaries at the local, state, and national levels and government officials on the supply side The households, and local community based organizations on the demand side Separate questionnaires for government officials, peoples’ representatives, and households and gram panchayat.

7. Criteria for Selection of Districts Analyse disaggregated HDI data to chose Best, Moderate and Worst performing districts in terms of development. Percentage of Agricultural population, especially rural, in the total. Production of Agriculture- considerable contribution to the State’s agricultural out put and variety of cultivation. Access to Public amenities like PHCs, education institutions, water & sanitation etc. Allocation of government funds Districts Selected RajasthanWest Bengal BestHanumangarhHughly ModerateBundiJalpaiguri WorstBanswara, BarmerPurulia, Malda

8. Criteria for the selection of Blocks from the Districts Tentative list of blocks- final selection on the basis of inputs from the district level. Select two blocks per district on the basis of following selection criteria- Chose the best and worst blocks on the basis of development indicators and poverty. High percentage of agricultural population (Agricultural labourers + cultivators) in each block. Ensure that each block produce different crops; where ever possible. To ensure heterogeneity not to select contiguous blocks; unless there is stark difference in terms of development or major crops cultivated. Distribution of funds

9. Criteria for the selection of Panchayats from the Blocks Select two panchayats from the selected block based on Ratio of agricultural population to total working population in the villages. Concentration of agricultural activities. Based on the inputs from prior interviews and CBOs on development and agricultural problems; choose the worst and best performing panchayat on development

10. Criteria for choice of Household from Selected Panchayat Identify the prominent agricultural area using information from the interviews at the district, block and panchayat levels. Establish a direct link with agricultural like a) agricultural labourers b) Cultivators c) Agricultural Land owners etc. If the person is earning/earned part/ full of his income from agriculture she/ he is eligible. Try to maintain 50:50 sex ratio of the interviewees, as far as possible. Choose respondents according to the share of each social, religious and occupational group in the total population of the village to ensure an accurate representation of the society and agricultural activity of the panchayat.

11. Why Focus on Pachayati Raj Institutions (PRIs)? The three-tier PRI System was intended to provide the people a larger role in political decision making. Expected to reduce the transaction costs and improve efficiency of services delivery. First tier of signalling of needs and demands and last tier of service delivery. Proximity to hot-spots of impact- testing the possibility of swift action.

12. Results of Field Survey Participation of the female stakeholders in the survey was limited due to the prevailing socio-cultural aspects and their lower level of awareness Elected female representatives operated in constraining environments that favored men as the only important actor Functional literacy was poor among the farmers Basic Information Raja sthan West Bengal Total Total Respondents 366412778 Female306595 Male336347683 SC63135198 ST9274166 Muslim/ OBC177122299 General3178109 No Response336 Education: Illiterate 112109221 Education: 10 th or lower 178260438 Education: Above 10 th 563894

13. Occupational Profile The small- scale farmers constituted almost 45 per cent of the total households surveyed Multiple role in West Bengal indicates high incidence of outward migration and seasonal agricultural employment. Above 70% of the total respondents depended on agriculture for more than half of their income- susceptibility to the changes in the international and domestic arena. Rajastha n West BengalTotal Agricultu ral Labour306494 Small- scale farmer194163357 Medium scale farmer533285 Large scale farmer563389 Multiple Role26118144

14. Is agricultural income sufficient for survival? Rajasth an West BengalTotal Yes105113218 No207222429 Family Members Work435396 Others257  Different responses according to scale of activity: Large and Medium farmers receive sufficient income. Sufficiency for small farmers’ depend on rain, local prices, affordability and availability of credit.  Coping measures- migration, animal husbandry in Rajasthan (walking cash reserves!)

15. Knowledge on International Trade Awareness on international trade in agricultural trade and globalization is abysmally low, even in the export zones. Lack of awareness amongst government officials and people’s representatives on trade and globalization Domestic trade is misunderstood as international trade Inability to trace the value chain beyond the point of sale. Higher procurement price and stopping imports as desired government action against cheaper imports. Raj- asthan West BengalTotal Have Knowledge373875 Don't know240316556 Sell to exporters628 Don't Know if it goes abroad81018 Know Someone else369 Better price for exported items16420

16. Reasons for Cultivating Current Crops  Propensity to try new crops low due to availability of water, concerns on subsistence.  Increased vulnerabilities due to dependence on traditional varieties.  Demonstration effect important in cultivation of better varieties of traditional crops.  Timely incentives(especially input) induce shift to cash crops and vegetables  Market demand, government incentives alone not enough Rajasth an West Ben galTotal Traditional254324578 Government subsidies and incentives 022 Recent Market Demand161430 Contract Farming123 Others18220

17. Most Important Point of Sale Raja- sthan West BengalTotal Government procurement101 Local Private Agents13667203 Directly at Mandis114208322 Multiple Points462874 Self Consumption5945104 Lack of marketing facilities for agricultural goods as the important cause of underdevelopment Most small-scale farmers sell produce close to the farm due to high transportation costs, lack of awareness about regulated markets(Rajasthan) and storage facilities(West Bengal). Result: low prices, wastage and exploitation. Low awareness about government procurement.

18. Knowledge about Govt. Support Programmes/ Subsidy for Agriculture Raja- sthan West BengalTotal Know About Govt. programs227260487 Don't Know133127260 Low: despite the ‘yes’ as most of them could not single out specific support for agriculture or its size. Government support for housing was held as agricultural support Knowledge limited to ‘minikits’ and subsidy for drip irrigation. Delivery of support inefficient- untimely, insufficient; and corruption

19. Access to Agricultural Credit Raja- sthan West BengalTotal Requested169118287 Not Requested182229411 Difficult to get funds124100224 Not difficult to get funds.5879137 Difficult to access government funds Unwillingness to pledge land Local money lenders, traders better source as corruption and delay make the bank funds costly. Sivana, Rajasthan medium and large farmers have easy access to credit: middlemen- bank officials nexus. Indebted beyond their means in anticipation of waiver.

20. Primary Contact on Government Support Rajas- than West BengalTotal Approach Dept Directly12478202 Go through Political Leader374077 Panchayat Members155172327 Others365995 GP members best informants and primary access points. Capacity of the GP members as facilitators limited due to lack of information and dependence on govt. officials. Outreach programmes of the agricultural departments ineffective Difference of opinion between officials and political functionaries on the best access points.

21. Who could deliver support at the time of need? Farming has become speculative- Increased Vulnerability Uncertainties in the form of price shocks and crop loss More than profit margins, resources and time needed to recover after a loss determine the impact of shock in the era of globalisation. Important to assess stakeholder confidence in the available mechanisms Rajasthan West BengalTotal Local Panchayat613394 Agri Dept./ State Govt.12120141 Neighbours39136175 None/self27109136 Others145670 Wide variation in responses Rajasthan- Government, as neighbours will also be affected. West Bengal- Sceptical about government support- community and self help.

22. Preferred form of Support Raja- sthan West BengalTotal Money55244299 Food Grains8030110 Subsidy- Input582987 Work6639105 Other13 26 West Bengal preference for monetary support In Rajasthan, the stakeholders preferred food grains as the best form of support in Banswara; input subsidies in Barmer and work in Bundi.

23. NREGS as a Support Measure Teething problems: Less than legal wages and work Higher awareness, unforeseen transparency Positives Just five percent of the willing respondents did not receive any work. General satisfaction with wages; not with work. Rural wage rate has gone up; and out-migration has come down Employment for women in the vicinity of their homes and equal wages. Creation of rural infrastructure Points to Ponder The scheme needs to be reinvented to sustain- should not be too successful Should only supplement rural employment and not replace Incorporate labour mobility. Ward- off ensuing nexus and misuse with more transparency and audits.

24. Perceptions on NREGS Experience with NREGS( 596 respondents) RajasthanWest BengalTotal Applied/ has Job Card146317463 Did not seek work22 44 Doesn't Know about NREGS42226 Less Than 100 Days Work Received106234340 No Work Received34750 Less than Stipulated Wage1077114 Satisfied With Work Received673299 Not Satisfied with Work Received44112156 Satisfied With Wage Received613697 Not Satisfied With Wage Received462369

25. Gram Sabha in Mainstreaming Development High participation and information on Gram sabha; barring few exceptions Scepticism about its utility Functions of gram sabha are not well understood by polity- Requests largely relate to personal needs. Idea as a tool to aggregate articulate demands has not caught up in the villages. Policy makers do not pay enough attention to the action plans of gram sabha. Predetermined thrust areas affect Grama sabha’s effectiveness in responding to local needs Burueacratic- responsibility to draw plans and financial authority, limited authority to people’s representatives. Misuse of gram sabha in West Bengal due to competitive politics. Process of elimination of requests problematic and snaps the signalling process.

26. Perceptions on Gram Sabha Rajasthan West BengalTotal Attended Gramsabha197262459 Not attended14261203 Not Interested222042 Don't Know about Gramsabha304878 Proposed Activities162182344 Recommendations of Gram Sabha are Implemented85119204 Recommendations of Gram Sabha are not Implemented131116247

27. Funds Available to GP Raja- sthan West BengalTotal Sufficient8068148 Not Sufficient116131247 Don't Know155168323 Considerable lack of knowledge and secrecy about funds available at the GP level Available funds are insufficient. Mostly, funds are underutilised due to untimely allocation and improper planning More funds may not translate into more development

28. People as Policy Makers Are common people capable of participating in governance? More than 60 per cent respondents had suggestions to offer. Most suggestions were on personal needs Need to strengthen existing avenues of consultation and introducing fool-proof methods to ensure effective stakeholder participation in political decision making.

29. Impediments to Mainstreaming Development The Missing Opinion: Women in Decision Making. War & peace between government officials & peoples’ representatives at the GP level. Convenient Coalitions: Peoples representatives from Weaker Sections Lack of reach and responsiveness of government support mechanisms. Irrelevant eligibility criterion- misuse of BPL Cards Inefficient use of government funds Ignorance about issues related to globalisation and its impact Asymmetric information and adverse selection by stakeholders on markets and prices.

30. Lack of stakeholder participation in political decision making Gram panchayat cannot respond to contingencies Complex signalling process to gather information on demands from the ground with multiple actor involvement. Multiple layers of decision making often result in inefficient implementation of support schemes. Absence of an inclusive mechanism that could reflect the ground realities in the formulation of national development strategy. The need is to mainstream development in the national development strategy- democratisation of the process. Development, when inclusive, is the best strategy to mainstream trade. In retrospect…

31. Strengthening the capacity of central government and its officials in effective assimilation of poverty and livelihood concerns. Wider stakeholder consultation at the state and district levels. Strengthening State Governments’ capacities on trade issues. Raising awareness and ensuring transparency on old and new development and support schemes at the GP level Contingency funds for GPs to act swiftly in the time of need. Enhancing the authority of people’s representatives at GP Enhancing the capacities of local civil society and media on trade and globalisation. Way Forward?

32. Thank You