Via the last newsletter, Beyond Chocolate call for candidates to join the three new working groups on living income, ending deforestation and youth and decent work.
A good mix of experts started the discussions in each of the groups and have been working hard on their advice for the call criteria and the description of possible interim targets. The working groups on living income, ending deforestation and youth and decent work also discussed the first draft of the accountability framework and provided valuable input for a second version. Their first findings and a forward look for the working groups will be shared on December 5th with the Partnership during a dedicated panel discussion. A first written report will be shared with the group via mail, giving the Partnership the chance to provide feedback and comments by January 2020.
A close cooperation with the other European national platforms in Germany and Switzerland is steadily taking shape and will create alignment on the topics of living income and ending deforestation. The alignment of our monitoring and evaluation efforts is already ongoing. The other EU platforms also provided valuable input for the accountability framework.
Finally, some news about the visibility and impact of Beyond Chocolate partnership at the global level. During the September ICCO meetings in Abidjan, Beyond Chocolate’s senior program manager Els Haelterman was elected as a member of the ICCO consultative board. The program management team will work closely with the Beyond Chocolate’s Steering Committee to prepare its upcoming meetings. The ICCO consultative board was put in place in 2003 to encourage the active participation of experts from the private sector in the work of the ICCO and to promote a continuous dialogue among experts from the public and private sectors. More info on ICCO and its bodies can be found here.