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

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Area 88,752 sq.km.

Population (2001) 802.21 lakhs

Female: 387 lakhs; Male: 415 lakhs

District 19

Sub-Division 65

Police Station 452

Zilla Parishad 18 ; Total Elected Representatives :716

Mahakuma Parishad 1 ; Total Elected Representatives : 7

Panchayyats Samity 333 ;Total Elected Representatives : 8543

Gram Panchayat 3354 ; Total Elected Representatives:51075

Literacy Rate (2001) 69.22 per cent.; Male 77.58;Female 60.02

Agricultural Land 58,43,483 Hectares

Irrigated Land 44.47 per cent

Unirrigated Land 55.53 per cent

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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

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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.

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Some views about the Policy Making process

• It is very centralized

• Lacks Grassroot Input

• It does not address local specifics and variations

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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

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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

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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.

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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

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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

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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.

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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

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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

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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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