6. Lessons learned / implications for policy
It has been a challenge trying to combine development and business objectives – particularly with a complex, volatile & competitive world market around cotton & cotton products. A clearer focus on mechanisms to combine these issues right from the start of the project would have ensured more effectively that both development and business aims were met.

Central agents (here Agrocel/Vericott) needed to work in strong partnership to create more vertical supply chains, which increase market accessibility. Marketing for this project was focused on established brands, which, due to their size, take time to implement the schemes created. Perhaps there is a need to work with smaller, more dynamic brands who can lead change in the market place.

Organic farming is an important component for making livelihoods sustainable. More work now needs to be done to communicate the benefits of organic farming to farmers – an embedded communications strategy, right from project start, would be useful. Broader economic and environmental factors, beyond the scope or control of the ground-level project, will ultimately determine its sustainability and success in any given year

Farmers may experience a short-term reduction in yield / income in the initial years of switching to organic production. Therefore, the intervention may be most likely to succeed among the ‘coping poor’, or those who can withstand this sort of income reduction. To engage with the poorer level households, support may need to be offered during this changeover time. Sustainability is a key issue – Agrocel currently provides farm inputs, training and finance on a no-profit basis, which presents obvious issues for medium to long term viability. Long-term business planning embedded from the start is crucial.

Access to markets is critical for small-scale local farmers – the role of the intermediary agent must emphasise this. A local service centre (less than 15 km) has been a strong indicator for project success – geographical closeness to market access reduced transport costs and increases economic viability. A crucial area of need is technical support to intermediary agents to help them understand market dynamics, to respond rapidly and flexibly to changes, and to produce rigorous financial plans for long-term viability.

Supply chains have clearly benefited greatly from the initiative, but greater interaction and contact along the chain needs to take place – between local and international partners, between producers and processors. It would have been beneficial if contact processes and protocols had been formalised from the start of the project.