During the business engagement training given through the Shared Resources, Joint Solutions programme, civil society organisations furthered their knowledge about positioning, negotiation and dialogue. For example with regards to positioning, at first, Ecotrust thought about incentivising Kinyara to fulfil the requirements of and attain the BonSucro standard; a survey even showed that Kinyara was actually not too far off requirements. However, Ecotrust understood that the standard is a market incentive and helps a business access a market that it could not reach before; in the case of Uganda, the sugar industry is very much protected, so there is no added value in being certified as the price would remain the same. This led Ecotrust to switch strategies.
- Creating a learning space for civil society to share knowledge and best practices for increased business engagement impact while considering while considering existing capacities, networks and needs.
- Willingness to learn and share more ways to influence business
- It is very important for a civil society organisation to be cognisant of the context in which it is operating in, in order to tailor its business engagement strategy
- It is necessary to come to the table with credible information and convincing arguments
- Stakeholder mapping is paramount to effective partnerships