GENEVA (ILO News) - The impact of globalization on the lives and livelihoods of millions of agricultural workers will be examined by tripartite delegates from 26 countries at a meeting to be held at the International Labour Office (ILO) in Geneva from 18-22 September 2000.
According to a report * prepared for the meeting, which is organized under the auspices of the ILO's Sectoral Activities Programme, delegates will debate such questions as: "How is the agriculture sector - the largest employer of the world labour force - affected by globalization? What role does it play and how can this role be enhanced in a sustainable manner to improve the living standards of farmers and farm workers?"
The report shows that the agriculture sector has effectively been "marginalized" in the process of globalization, with most gains going to manufacturing-export industries. Hence "there is an urgent need to draw lessons for how the process of globalization can be altered to benefit the maximum number of people and countries". The urgency arises from the fact that agriculture still contains over half of the world's labour force and over two-thirds of world poverty.
The benefits of globalization for the farm sector have so far come in the form of diversification of the export base to nontraditional crops - fruits, vegetables, flowers. Much of this has happened as a result of increased foreign direct investment forthcoming with increasing globalization. The drawback here is the exclusion of smallholders from the new activities "because of the high capital requirements for greenhouses, cold storage, and imported materials and personnel". Participation of the small farmers "should be one prong of the strategy for further expansion of the new activities". The report cautions due diligence in attracting foreign direct investment into agriculture too quickly for fear of alienating vast numbers of farmers and workers from the land.
An intangible impact of globalization is through the fast transmission of new ideas and information about labour practices. "Arguably, this may play an even bigger role in changing agriculture in the future than trade and direct investment." "Voluntary private initiatives" are a manifestation of this, and starting with child labour, they now affect all aspects of conditions of work, particularly in relation to women's role in agriculture, occupational safety, and genetically modified crops.
The report shows that "the majority of children who work are found on farms; most of these work on family farms". Child labour is also found in commercial agriculture, with potentially far more serious risks of exploitation, "since children are exposed to long hours of work, physical drudgery, and hazards, with very little in the way of remuneration". Bonded labour is also common in various developing regions.
The report notes that for women in many developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia "agriculture is the primary source of employment". This "inclusion" is however "a mixed blessing" since women often have to contribute a majority of the labour on the farms without commensurate remuneration or a role in decision making. The ILO says that improving the condition of the impoverished women is "a long drawn-out task" in view of the gender roles in traditional rural societies and urges "greater mobilization of women at all stages of decision making" as a way of spurring social and economic change.
In terms of worker health and safety, agriculture ranks among the three most dangerous occupations, with increasing use of machinery and chemicals at the root of many workplace accidents and illnesses. The report notes that much of the agricultural workforce "lacks training in safe practices" and cites a need to "train workers and provide them with protective equipment to lessen the risk of injury". It calls for "urgent steps" to reduce farm workers' exposure to harmful chemicals, including banning the broadcast spraying of pesticides.
In view of its topicality and potential impact on employment, debate will also focus on the pros and cons of genetically modified crops. "Genetic modifications occur even in nature; now such experiments are conducted in laboratories and enter the real world with the speed of the Internet." Despite the gains in production and reduced use of chemicals, genetically modified crops give rise to concerns about the unpredictability of transplanted genes and possible unintended effects of releasing living modified organisms into the environment. "Another fear", the report notes, "is the increasing private sector dominance of a few commercial enterprises in their development, unlike the case of the Green Revolution, in which the public sector played a significant role." The delegates to the meeting may wish to examine general guidelines on the various issues stemming from use of GM.
The report concludes that the concept of "decent work" recently espoused by the ILO "provides most of the essential ingredients for agricultural development on a safe and sustainable basis". Adherence of governments to the ILO's core labour standards would ensure that "the promise of globalization does not become the prerogative of a minority in the modern sector to the exclusion of the majority on the farms".
* Sustainable agriculture in a globalized economy, report for discussion at the Tripartite meeting on moving to sustainable agricultural development through the modernization of agriculture and employment in a globalized economy, ILO, Geneva, 2000. ISBN: 92-2-112171-2. Price: 15 Swiss francs.