In search of ethical coffee- Are we there yet?

On the way back from Eastern Uganda we made a detour to a tea plantation. this was really interesting for me as I went to the Secondary School on the adjacent hill and we used to come jogging through the tea plantation every afternoon by way of practice.

Tony had never seen a tea plantation it was therefore a real treat for him. Our guide told us that the tea plantation was now owned by a Ugandan Asian. It was late afternoon and the tea pickers were out, we observed that there was a health centre and a school, within the grounds although the housing seemed a bit tired and slum like




We spent the following day on a coffee farm in a place called Bugerere, this was an upmarket set up with certification from UTZ
and later that afternoon we caught up with the Quality and Regulatory Manager at the Uganda Coffee Development Agency and he is pictured here with Tony


On Saturday we hit the road to western Ugandan and 6 hours later we were at Ankole Coffee Producers Cooperative Union. We were met by their Executive Secretary John Nuwagaba who run through the history of their co-op. He told us that the coop was fair trade certified and was part of Cafe Direct, where they currently hold 5% shares and are hoping to increasing these in the coming year.




Tony is pictured here left to right here Hassan our guide, the chairman of the Coop , John Nuwagaba

We were then told that the farms and factories were 16 KM off road so we headed in that direction and this is what we found

Something that we found puzzling was that co-op secretary informed us that they were working towards organic coffee production and had applied for and granted funding from Rabo bank in the Netherlands to pay a consultant Alan Tulip to teach them organic farming methods.

This co-op didn't look like it could afford artificial or chemical fertilizers of any sort and were already growing their coffee without chemicals! Why did they need to put the much needed funding into something they had no need for?

Please take a look at the state of their facilities below and you may well agree with me


Coffee bags inside the coffee factory were stored on bare ground as opposed to a raised platform to allow for ventilation


coffee beans on the floor, it was unclear whether these were discarded or awaiting packaging


and this what the exterior of the coffee factory looks like.

We found this visit really distressing, specifically because two high profile UK based organisations are involved in this factory/cooperative


Whilst writing this blog this article came out in The Times today.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/article6531246.ece
May I suggest to Cafe Direct that they should first and foremost aim to improve the conditions of the growers that are affiliated to their programmes. In addition they should seek to have Value Added to the coffee at the point of production.

That would be a much better proposition for the famers, the countries where the coffee is grown would collect more by way of revenue. Taking raw products and returning them as finished products for the farmers and local to consume is a tad patronising I think.

We found and brought back coffee produced and packaged in Eastern Uganda and it we have enjoyed it very much. Ultimately this what the growers want

Being in the wrong place at the right time or is it?

Back in 2007 I decided to go into a new direction that saw me set up Ethnic Supplies a social enterprise. As a civil servant I had no idea where to start and a quick search on the internet lead me to my local business link in Woking.

I was put through a programme lasting 10 weeks where I learned about marketing, sales, accounting, PR, website etc.

The programme ended with an invitation to a Business exhibition by Business link where I got to attend various workshops. Back then I had a real fear of anything techy and as I selected which of the workshops I should attend I made a mental note to avoid any workshops dealing with IT.

Looking back this doesn’t make sense at all as those are the very workshops I should have attended so I could learn. By a bizarre twist of luck that is exactly what happened.

Whilst searching for a workshop on marketing I ended up in the wrong room where the workshop was ICT related. I got in just in time to hear the facilitator say “Google loves Ecademy and Craig’s list” and he went on to ask who in the audience was signed up to either.

I realised I was in the wrong room and left but made a mental note to look up those two “things” (didn’t know what they were back then) when I got home. I did and signed up to both.

I found Ecademy in particular interesting. I connected with people easily, and one of those was Charles Okwalinga a Ugandan man who owns an African restaurant in Hackney East London. I had eaten at this restaurant but I had never met him.

He suggested that I drop in next time I happened to be in London and I did and I met Fred his friend. Fred is also Ugandan. We got into a long discussion on various issues including Ethnic Supplies. Fred asked me to stay in touch as he felt there ways he could get involved in Ethnic supplies.

Fast forward to 2008 and I am thrown into fundraising to bring clean water into a remote Ugandan village.

Whilst organising the event, one of our aim was to reach people with ties to Uganda. I therefore got in touch with Fred and asked if he knew any Uganda Asians and how I could reach them He told me he would send me some details on this and if I was free on 20 Sept 2008 he would get me an invitation to go and meet them in person. For you see the Ugandan President was travelling to Leicester to meet the Ugandan Asians that were thrown out the country by Idi Amin


I couldn't believe my luck! check back tommorrow for what happened next!

Ethnic Supplies at BBC Gardner's World Live

It is 6 weeks away and we at Ethnic Supplies are very excited to have been intivited to participate in the BBC Gardener's World Live

Our Stand has been changed and here is where we will be located


We hope you will pop in to say hello:-)

Help your mother help African Mothers on Mothers day

Mothering Sunday is almost here and I have a very specific request of you, Please help African mothers.

African mothers are still marginalized, excluded from formal employment but retain the responsibilities of ensuring that the family is fed and clothed. They are however not sitting at home, waiting for handouts. They have created some amazing fashion accessories, handicrafts and fashionable clothes, you could help them by buying these things. This would enable them to feed and send their children to school. This is a Win Win Win situation as you too will get a beautifully handcrafted gift for your dear mother who will be proud to have a son/daughter who cares for those less fortunate than she is!


Let me introduce you to Bianca a mother from Weybridge Surrey, doesn't she look beautiful in these clothes and accessories. Bainca is wearing a had that has been handmade by women in the Madagascan slums. The hat is handcrafted from Raffia.

http://www.ethnicsupplies.co.uk/shop/listing.asp?Category_ID=2






The basket that Bianca is carrying is handcrafted in SW Uganda. It is made from Papyrus and its colour is achieved by a mixture of tea and coffee
http://www.ethnicsupplies.co.uk/shop/detail.asp?Product_ID=331





Bianca's top and shorts are handmade by Mrs Mrema of Hand products of Tanzania, doesn't she look beautiful in it. With summer around the corner Iam sure your mother would appreciate this very much











Please note the Sandals that Bianca is wearing, these are handcrafted by Julia a masaai woman in Tanzania





Here is a selection of our handmade cotton bags. They are handmade by Marvelous Batik of Tanzania, this group work with women from the slums Dar es Salaam


http://www.ethnicsupplies.co.uk/shop/listing.asp?Category_ID=14








If you are looking for more inspiration on how to wear our ethical Fashion accessories please follow this link http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/thing?id=5049591

Please note that Bianca's top and shorts are not on our website and if you are interested in getting hold of a apri for your dear Mother please drop us an email with her size.

Happy Mother's day and we look forward to hearing from you


Our shop is at wwww.ethnicsupplies.co.uk/shop

Bringing hope back after the 1994 Rwanda genocide

Rebuilding the nation of Rwanda was never going to be easy following the atrocities of 1994, especially the economy of that wonderful nation. Women were especially vulnerable due to their lack of property specifically agricultural land.

The nation had to find away to heal itself in order to move forward and for women this literary involved weaving their way towards a secure future. Women all over Rwanda set up weaving circles and began weaving the Agaseke

The Agaseke, is a traditional skillfully designed Rwandan basket woven using sisal, grasses and raffia. Customarily woven by women, the Agaseke basket represents a historic account and is renowned for its impressive quality and associated cultural traditions.

It takes several days for weavers to make each basket and the process is often meticulous and requires invariable attention to detail. It is an exciting venture for many of Rwanda’s women, a time-honored art that can now be used for economic empowerment as they continue to weave for a secure future for themselves and their families.

One of these women's weaving circles is called the AGESEKE Promotion Project and is made up of 3800 women from in and around the capital city Kigali. The project provides training skills to impoverished African women to work their way out of poverty, these skills include, weaving, family planning, literacy and business skills


To date the group produces a range of functional handicrafts that can be applied to a modern context including Earrings, necklaces, bangles, jewellery, table runners, table mats, fruit baskets to mention but a few.

Ethnic Supplies is proud to be able to bring these products to an international audience


The Ageseke basket order yours today from
http://www.ethnicsupplies.co.uk/shop/listing.asp?Category_ID=17



handmade silver striling earings



fruit basket

£ 1 for the deserving poor

I came across this article and it got me thinking about the whole notion of the deserving poor. As a Social Housing Practioner, this is a term I have come across many a times in books and articles that chart the history of social Housing in Great Britain.

The philanthropists referred to in this article are all too familiar, Octavia Hill, William Sutton etc are some of the pioneers of social housing for the deserving poor. If you walk through areas of Marylebone in London signs of Octavia Hill’s philanthropic activities are still visible today.

I must admit that, this notion of the “deserving poor” has left me a little unsettled in far as my own views are concerned and I couldn’t help but wonder whether I too practice according to that notion.

In my time a Housing Manager I looked after a traveller’s site owned by the local authority I worked for at the time. I visited the site one afternoon and on my way out I found a £1 on the through road. I put it in my pocket and went back to the office. As I left the office that evening I came across one of our tenants who regularly sat on the bench outside our office and consumed can after can of beer or cider. I remembered the £1 I had found on the Travellers site and I wondered whether I should give it to him, Christmas was only two days away and I thought he probably needed this pound more than I did. I however very quickly changed my mind as I thought he will only go and buy more alcohol!

I greeted him and walked on. I drove to my local supermarket and found an Eastern European woman at the entry selling the “Big Issue” magazine. I promptly reached into my pocket and gave her the pound I had found. I decided that she deserved this pound more than the man outside our offices because she was doing something to help herself.

This is the same concept I employ at Ethnic Supplies, seek out women who are doing something to help themselves out of poverty and help them access world wide markets with their wares.

Is wrong therefore for international donors to insist on good governance in those countries that Aid is given?

Although I wholly subscribe to the idea of good governance in African countries and in fact fully believe that some of the challenges the continent faces today are down to bad/poor governance, I had not entirely considered the link between, International Aid, the notion of good governance.

In my mind it does make sense that unless there are structures in place to ensure that the Aid goes to the people for whom it is intended then the poor of the developing world will continue to miss out. These structures are part of good governance/administration.

This raises another question for me, how realistic is it for donor countries to insist on good governance as a condition of Aid, and what exactly is meant by good governance in this respect? My understanding of good governance, in this respect amounts to accountability and openness, both of which are routed in trust, trust by the people of those charged with administering the Aid.

How then can good governance be achieved? A quick short answer is “with great difficulty” This is due to that word again “Trust”, in his book Being Afrikan Mandivamba Rukuni puts forward an often overlooked view of why this Trust may elude many African nations. The scramble and partition of Africa displaced peoples from areas of origin and brought together people that for instance do not speak the same language and differ in culture; an example of this is seen in North and southern Sudan, North and Southern Uganda etc.

In my mind this created a form of prejudice “tribalism” and this is a huge contributing factor to the lack of good governance. Different tribes with nothing in common per se other than belonging to a border created by imperialism where thrown together, which makes it near impossible for trust and harmony to exist.

One would argue that, that is a long time ago and surely it is time to move on. I would agree with that point of view entirely as it is unlikely that history can be reversed, but it is not up to me and I suspect I am in the minority with this point view as was evidenced in the aftermath of the Kenyan elections earlier this year.

We as Africans can certainly work on unity and trust if we are committed to and I strongly believe that would go a long way in resolving some of the challenges the continent faces. Trust in each other, trust in our governments etc? Could this also be the answer to the “brain Drain” touched on by the article?

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