The other faces of the economy. Invest in people.

Devoted to diversity

The voluntary cooperation program Uniterra and its partners in Asia, Africa and the Americas seek to facilitate the development of marginalized populations. Here are some examples of organizations from around the world, experts in different development sectors, such as forestry, community health, fair trade, employability of women and young people, as well as political dialogue.

In Nepal, the Federation of Community Forest Users (FECOFUN) is the most important civil society association in the country with a membership of about 8.5 million people. The groups that form the Federation are specialized in non-timber forest products (NTFP), which encourage job creation and income generation for local communities in very disadvantaged regions. The FECOFUN also supports the protection of natural resources through the promotion of the Forest Stewardship Council certification for the forests in the 75 districts of Nepal.

Fair trade is also promoted by our partners. In Latin America, the Comisíón interinstitucional de comercio justo y solidario in Guatemala and the Movimiento de economía social y comercio justo (MESyCJ) in Bolivia support small-scale producers (small craft and agricultural products), as well as community tourism. The strength of these two organizations is in its achievement: they managed to get social economy and fair trade officially recognized by their respective governments, who have put in place public policies favourable to social and solidarity economy.

In Africa, in the food processing sector, the solidarity economy involves women in particular. In Burkina Faso, nearly 1,000 women rice parboilers, members of the cooperatives that participate to the Comité interprofessionnel du riz (CIR-B), have enjoyed a significant income increase. In Senegal, the Cadre de concertation des producteurs d’arachides (CCPA) has given significant support to women involved in food processing so that they can diversify their products. These women have been able to innovate and access new markets in a waning agricultural sector.

In view of the important number of young people in developing countries, the social and solidarity economy approach has one great advantage: it promotes employability. In Vietnam, the career training school Hoa Sua is a successful example of social economy that encourages professional integration for disadvantaged youth in the tourism and catering sectors. To fund its training program, the organization engages in commercial activities. Besides the culinary school, it has opened three restaurants, a mini-hotel, a bakery and a catering service.

No matter the country involved, the solidarity and social economy movement needs public policies favourable to its development. In Africa, the national networks of Mali and Guinea, RENAPESS and REGESS respectively, are there to promote values like ethics, equity, responsibility, and shared interest. They are also actively involved in a constructive political dialogue with their governments so that social and solidarity economy is recognized as an effective method in the fight against poverty.