Developing a GPSNR Assurance Model

It’s been a busy month, to say the least! If you haven’t had the chance to take stock of everything that has happened, here is the update: 

Strategy and Objectives Working Group

The group has finalised the Theory of change, which is currently in the process of being designed for public communications. They have also published the Environmental Risk Study, which can be found here. 

Currently, the group is working on developing the RFP for the Economic Risk Study. 

Smallholder Representation Working Group

After three successful smallholder onboarding workshops for smallholders from Indonesia, India and Cambodia since July 2021, the working group completed three more onboarding workshops for Thailand, Ivory Coast and Sri Lanka. 

More than 80 smallholders from all three countries participated, and the working group is now working on inducting those who apply for membership into the GPSNR ecosystem. The group is also busy with the fourth smallholder international call of 2021 on 25th November to prepare smallholders for GA 2021, as well as to seek smallholders’ views on plans for 2022. 

Policy Toolbox Working Group

The group has finalised the reporting requirements which have been put up for vote to all ordinary members before the General Assembly on 14th December. Take a look at the resolution here.

Capacity Building Working Group

This month, the group worked on presenting GPSNR’s position on rubber agroforestry at COP 26 via the agroforestry Task Force and completed the first review of the GPSNR Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs).The GAP Task Force is now working on finalising the GAPs, including preparations for pre-GA webinar on 2 December 2021, while a separate Task Force has started work  on commencing developments on the GPSNR Knowledge Sharing Platform. The work on the strategy review and implementation plans for Indonesia and Ivory Coast remain in progress. 

Traceability and Transparency Working Group

This working group has finalised the traceability benchmark internally, and will be holding a introducing the document  during the pre-GA webinar on 30th December 2021. The document will go out for broader consultation among the membership soon. The WG will also  provide a summary of possible tools to the EC based on traceability studies conducted last year. 

Shared Responsibility Working Group

The group has discussed and explored solutions to identified root causes for each focus area of shared responsibility. It is also continuing to draft activities and a framework for Shared Responsibility for integration into other processes such as the Implementation Guidance, which will include consultations with GPSNR members and WGs to ensure alignment on Shared Responsibility for the platform. 

Strategy and Objectives Working Group

The working group includes both the Risk subgroup and the Assurance Model task force and is currently working on some exciting stuff!

The Risk subgroup has been busy, with consortiums Agridence and Koltiva having kick started their pilot field trials on the traceability tools. They are actively pursuing the next steps for the deliverable from ASI on the Risk Assessment Framework. This includes conducting internal piloting and cross-walking the tool with GPSNR commissioned studies to identify gaps. Lastly, second in an ongoing series, the Traceability Tools Webinar will be occurring on 26th April and you may register for it here. 

The Assurance Model taskforce will be meeting to discuss updates on KPI alignments, due diligence system and the members progress model. 

Smallholders Representation and Capacity Building (SCB) Working Group

The SCB Working Group has proposed a new structure with three co-chairs and this has been officially endorsed. The next Working Group meeting will take place on 27th April, where they plan to formally endorse the Terms of Reference. 

Updates on the Income Diversification and Rubber Agroforestry taskforce, the strategy for 2023-2024 has been endorsed, and the taskforce will continue their work on planning the schedule and sequence of workshops and finalising the contractual plan. 

On the Digital Knowledge Sharing Platform front, Koltiva will work together with the taskforce to start developing the app and its features. In upcoming news, the Thailand Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) subgroup will publish the tender soon. 

 Policy Toolbox Working Group

Input has been collected on the reporting process from members through the Year 1 Reporting Review Survey. As part of this review, stakeholder- specific meetings will be conducted to collect more feedback on the reporting process. Based on the Year 1 Reporting Review results, any changes will be assessed to the reporting framework and its details (i.e., Process, Extensions, Questions), and disclosure requirements will need to be agreed on for reporting Years 2 and 3 (Transporting Reporting Roadmap- TRR). Future actions will require the reporting guidance for Year 2 to be improved according to changes proposed to the reporting matrix.

An RFP for consultants has recently been published to look into proposing a quantitative orientation for the reporting matrix and do a crosswalk with other reporting frameworks (CDP Forest, GRI and ZSL-SPOTT). On news of the Assurance Model front, what follows would be to finalise Compliance Panel Terms of Reference and operational guidance based on the Assurance Model.  

Shared Responsibility Working Group

During the physical meeting in January- February, the Governance and Guiding Principles were presented, Manufacturers will provide a revised document of said principles by April. 

Next phases for the Working Group are pending the outcomes of discussions on shared investment principles, which are currently happening on the Manufacturers category level. The Working Group will revamp data sharing and value transfer discussions once the proposal from the Manufacturers is available.