34 more fair trade municipalities, Koksijde returns label

In all of Flanders, six municipalities are returning their title. These are As, Denderleeuw, Dilbeek, Grobbendonk, Herk-De-Stad and therefore Koksijde. “The reasons for this are diverse, including savings on personnel or the simple lack of a pronounced local policy on fair trade,” says Fairtrade Belgium. “But the new symbolic contribution of 250 euros also appears to be a threshold for one of the six municipalities.”

The fair trade label is an initiative of 4 founding organizations: Fairtrade Belgium, Oxfam Belgium, Rikolto and 11.11.11. They want to fully commit to the LEF principles: local, ecological and fair thinking and acting.

Currently, 34 of the 64 West Flemish municipalities are still allowed to use the designation fair trade municipality. To retain their title, municipalities must complete a questionnaire – the ‘Fair-O-Meter’ – every two years, which evaluates them on six criteria about, among other things, the cooperation of the board with local shops, catering establishments, schools, companies and associations.

Just half of the West Flemish fair trade municipalities achieved the highest A-score in the latest version. 15 municipalities get a B and 2 a C. The worst score is an E.