Capacidade organizativa e desempenho da comercialização: o caso das associações rurais beneficiárias do Projeto São José III, Governo do Estado do Ceará/Brasil

Abstract

The Ceará State Government has included in its political agenda a set of measures aimed at consolidating the production and commercialization of Family Farming. Among said measures, the São José III Project (PSJIII) stands out. In its third edition, it spread throughout the state, integrating itself with economic and social development policies, with a commitment to improve living conditions in semi-arid Ceará. To meet the new demands of PSJIII, the State Government, through the Office of Agrarian Development (SDA) and the Agropolos of Ceará Institute (Agropolos), signed a contract, through accreditation, with the National Institute of Social Development and Professional Qualification (IDESQ), to prepare rural entities to develop management practices, in order to avoid problems in the planning, development and sustainability of future integrated activities, looking to strengthen promising productive chains - from basic inputs to the final product -, including insertion markets. In this context, this thesis deals, fundamentally, with the challenges faced by family farmers in Ceará when inserting their production in the markets through associative organizations, especially if their management is unsustainable. The question is: is there a relationship between the organizational capacity and the marketing performance of family farmers? Therefore, the general objective is to analyze the organization's relationship with the commercialization of family farming. For this purpose, descriptive and analytical methodological practices were established, based on a qualitative and quantitative approach, with the application of bibliographic and / or documentary research, production of primary data and field observations. The collection of primary data was based on systematic observations in loco and perceptions of the associative organizations about the scenario that were found - pointed out in the FOFA matrix - from September 2017 to June 2018, in 15 rural associations that benefited from the PSJIII , located in the Territories of Sobral, Extremo Oeste, Ibiapaba, Sertão Central and Centro Sul. For data analysis, descriptive statistics techniques were used in order to measure the organizational and commercial level of the associations, through the construction of two indexes: Organizational Capacity Index (ICO) and Commercialization Performance Index (IDC). As main results, it was verified that, in the analyzed factors, there was a deficiency in the group's experiential development, precarious condition of performing group tasks, unmotivated management and exclusion or devaluation of opportunities for support from external agents to achieve their socioeconomic development. As well, it was observed that associations that operate with capacity for articulation and relationships, capable of generating an environment of cooperation, participation, trust and flexibility, are better prepared to ensure a more efficient performance in marketing.