Improving quality management in a Palestinian date cooperative

Title Support to the productive, managerial and commercial reorganization of the cooperative of Palestinian and Egyptian date producers

Location Jericho, Palestine

Duration 2017 – 2019

Client Fondazione Giovanni Paolo II

Funding Italian Agency for Development Cooperation – AICS

Context

Dates are an important part of the local economy in Jericho (Palestine). In recent years its production and commercialization have helped revitalize Jericho’s economy. Therefore, great attention should be paid to the sustainability of the local supply chain and the various quality standards of agricultural production.

General objective

The project will support local enterprises by engaging in two key activities: enhancing the services offered by the Jericho Chamber of Commerce and increasing the managerial and administrative capacities of the target producers cooperative. Both activities will increase the quality and sustainability of their organizational and strategic management policies.

Our contribution

ARCO Researchers has carried out a qualified consultancy activity and support for the sharing of good practices in planning, analysis and evaluation. The aim was to contribute to the managerial and administrative re-organization of both the Jericho Chamber of Commerce and the cooperative of agricultural businesses.

Workers from the enterprises involved have been trained by ARCO Researchers in cooperative management, quality standards and certifications, business and marketing models.

ARCO Researchers completed several field missions with the aim of developing standard operating procedures for the phases of production management, harvest, post-harvest treatment, packaging and sales preparation. The adoption of these operating procedures by the members of the cooperative aims at creating standard production processes and guaranteeing sales quality standards both for national and international level. In May 2019 an integrated Quality Manual for the management of the cooperative was released.
In parallel to these activities, ARCO has collaborated to define the steps for a managerial re-organization of the cooperative and the definition of new business strategies.

Read more on quality assessment of date production in Palestine.