NATURAL FIBRES SEEK PLACE IN TRADE
UN YEAR WEAVES NEW PLACE FOR TRADITIONAL PRODUCTS

The year 2009 was again a busy year for the UN development system. A series of crises have dominated the agenda of the multilateral community – food, financial and economic, energy, environmental and biodiversity. Poverty and hunger, migration, water among other themes have also gained its momentum.

ADRIANO TIMOSSI, UNCTAD

Greater attention has been given to climate change, which certainly represents one of the greatest challenges for human society today and for the coming generations.

In this myriad of challenges, one important event has passed almost unnoticed by governments and society – the International Year of Natural Fibres (IYNF), celebrated in 2009. International years have been marked since 1959 by the UN in order to draw attention to major issues and to encourage international action. Regarding the development agenda, some of the most important were the 1965 International Year of Cooperation, the 1990 Year of Literacy, 2004 the International Year of Rice and 2008 the International Year of the Potato as well as of the Planet Earth, Sanitation and Languages. The year 2009 celebrates also the International Year of Astronomy and of Reconciliation together with the International Year of Natural Fibres. There have also been decades, such as the 2008-2017 Decade for the Eradication of Poverty.

The 2009 International Year on Natural Fibres was declared in December 2006, with the adoption by the General Assembly of its resolution 61/189. The GA invited the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to facilitate the observance of the year, in collaboration with Governments, regional and international organizations, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and relevant organizations of the United Nations such as UNCTAD with its mandate in trade and development. The overall objective of the International Year is to raise the profile of natural fibres, and thus improve the welfare of farmers around the world.

The strategy consists of four key areas: (a) To raise awareness and stimulate demand for natural fibres; (b) To encourage appropriate policy responses from the governments to problems faced by natural fibre industries; (c) To foster an effective and enduring international partnership among the various natural fibre industries and (d) To promote the efficiency and sustainability of natural fibre industries.

Natural fibres have strong socio-economic impacts in millions of livelihoods directly linked with production, trade, research, training industry and consumer sectors. Despite their importance, natural fibres face a series of challenges – from the competition of synthetic fibres to unfair trade policies that undermine their survival. In the case of synthetic fibres produced from petrochemicals, despite being a relatively young sector started in the 1960s, it has already taken over a large part of the market from natural fibres. Cheap synthetic fibres represent today an estimated 60 per cent of world textile production.

The international year aims to reverse this by stimulating the consumption of natural fibres, which should be seen more as a component of development and poverty and hunger reduction rather than a simple competitor of cheap synthetic material, which in most of the cases are produced with a very high environmental footprint. It foresees increasing the competitiveness and the sustainability of the sector through support of a more pro-active role of developed countries. Also more cooperation between developing countries, through the so-called South-South Cooperation initiatives, sharing experiences and technologies and creating markets.

The challenge remains not only in competition between natural and synthetic fibres. There is also the competition within the natural-fibres sector itself. This is the case of cotton, for example, the most important natural fibre product. Developed countries subsidize domestic production and the export of cotton, causing serious damage to poor farmers in developing countries and particularly in India, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, China and Brazil, among the 60-70 countries growing the crop. In West and Central Africa, governments and civil society organizations accuse developed countries and their unfair trade practices for having damaged the life of 10 to 15 million smallscale cotton farmers with strong impacts in their local, regional economies.

The emerging issues of highest concern include climate change resulting in reduction of crop production, migration and rural development. The International Year of Natural Fibres is the occasion to bring some of these issues to the table and to increase awareness of the importance of the sector. Everyone can do a small contribution to this important International Year of Natural Fibres, a sector with immense positive impacts in the efforts for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

For more information, see website (in 8 languages):
http://www.naturalfibres2009.org