UN partners with giant retail business to boost local economies in poorer nations

The United Nations agency tasked with hastening sustainable industrial growth in poorer countries today partnered with one of the world’s largest retail companies to establish initiatives that advance food standards and the livelihoods of small-scale producers in developing and emerging economies.

The partnership between the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and METRO Group will assist local economies by helping small growers and producers provide customers with better food products and creating a reliable network of local resources for retailers to supply their communities.

UNIDO noted that such schemes increase demand for locally-produced goods, which in turn fuels the local economy and helps to combat hunger, as well as impacting the well-being of farmers and their employees and families.

Joint projects are planned for the giant retailer to extend its successful food supplier qualification scheme – a key aspect of which allows farmers and producers to sell their own products – to Kazakhstan, Pakistan and India.

UNIDO and METRO are already working together in Egypt, where they help suppliers comply with international quality standards on food and safety issues. The project also enables farmers as well as small and medium-size food processors to market their products nationally and in some cases on the international level.

“METRO Group not only has a long-standing experience in qualifying suppliers but also offers local producers a reliable outlet for their products,” said UNIDO Director-General, Kandeh K. Yumkella.

“Developing the capacity of suppliers along supply chains and upgrading them in terms of quality, safety and compliance with market requirements will help them access domestic markets and in a further step export markets, which, in turn, will generate new jobs and higher income in developing countries,” added Mr. Yumkella.

The agreement was signed at by Mr. Yumkella and the METRO Group Chief Executive Officer Eckhard Cordes, with cooperation between the two open for other partners to join.