Major Programme 65. Enterprise and Cooperative Development

Summary of 1998-99 proposals and comparison with previous biennium (including funds from other sources)

65.1. Unemployment rates in most industrialized countries have risen considerably. In many countries undergoing the transition from a centrally planned to a market-oriented economy, retrenchment in government services and the privatization of public enterprises have caused a serious decline in public sector employment. With the exception of a few countries in South-East Asia, unemployment and underemployment have also continued to rise in developing countries, the situation being particularly serious in sub-Saharan Africa. Governments in both developing and industrialized countries have come to recognize that, to avoid massive unemployment, new jobs will have to be created by enterprises. To facilitate the creation and growth of enterprises, it is essential for them to be able to operate in a favourable legal and regulatory framework and an entrepreneurial culture in which they can have access to capital and a range of cost-effective enterprise support services. Account also needs to be taken of the fact that, in the context of an increasingly competitive and global market, enterprises will survive and expand and thus create new jobs, only if they have the capacity to adapt continuously to the changing environment and improve their productivity. Cooperative enterprises are also recognized as being effective in combating poverty and generating employment and incomes, although their potential is constrained in many countries by having to operate in an unfavourable legislative and policy environment.

65.2. Taking account of the vital role of enterprise development in the promotion of social justice through increased employment and the elimination of poverty, the objective of the major programme is the design and implementation by constituents of policies and programmes that promote and facilitate the creation of productive, sustainable and quality jobs in enterprises and cooperatives in both the formal and informal sectors and in urban and rural areas. The activities of the major programme consist mainly of technical advisory services and support for technical cooperation programmes, but also include action-oriented research and the dissemination of information. Through these activities, the ILO’s expertise will be made available to constituents in the fields of: small enterprise development; entrepreneurship training; small-scale finance; the integration of informal sector micro-enterprises into the formal economy; management development; productivity improvement; the promotion of employment and the improvement of working conditions in the hotel and tourism sector; and the promotion of cooperatives and similar participatory self-help undertakings of small producers, consumers, workers and the self-employed. The activities under this major programme will also include action programmes on: job creation through innovative financial mechanisms; productivity improvement, competitiveness and quality jobs in developing countries; and small and medium-sized enterprise development for employment.

65.3. The work of the major programme will be guided by the conclusions of the Conference discussions in 1997 and 1998 on “General conditions to stimulate job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises” and those of the first ILO Enterprise Forum (1996), which provided an opportunity for ILO constituents and enterprise managers to review important issues in enterprise development, and particularly the role that enterprises can play in collaboration with governments and the social partners in promoting social progress and enterprise competitiveness in a global economy. Account will also be taken of the resolutions adopted over the years by the Conference on entrepreneurship, productivity and the promotion of small and medium-sized enterprises, the Working Conditions (Hotel and Restaurants) Convention, 1991 (No.172), and the Cooperatives (Developing Countries) Recommendation, 1966 (No.127), as well as of cross-sectoral concerns, such as gender issues, child labour, tribal and indigenous peoples and the environment.

65.4. The major programme will play an important role in the implementation of the ILO Enterprise Strategy. Formulated in 1995, this strategy aims to harness the talents and resources of the ILO’s tripartite constituents to ensure that employment creation and productivity at the enterprise level go hand in hand with improvements in human resource management, working conditions and labour relations. Special efforts will be made to give effect in practice to ChapterV of the Programme of Action adopted by the World Summit for Social Development, which called on enterprises to pursue investment and other policies, including non-commercial activities, to contribute to social development programmes, including the generation of employment opportunities and social support services at the workplace. In accordance with the recommendations of the Fourth World Conference on Women, emphasis will also be placed on the provision of entrepreneurial and cooperative training for women.

65.5. The resources for this major programme are decreased by some $195,000 in real terms, in comparison with the biennium 1996-97. This is the net result of a decrease of 3/03 General Service work-years and some $217 000 in non-staff costs, mainly RBTC, partially offset by an increase of 2/04 Professional work-years.

65.1 Departmental management

65.6. Provision is made under this programme for the planning, monitoring and evaluation of the activities of the major programme, the coordination of interdepartmental activities and relations with the multidisciplinary advisory teams and the ILO field structure. The programme also includes activities concerning small-scale finance, ranging from cooperative savings and credit unions to credit for micro- and small enterprises. Provision is made here for the organization of a second Enterprise Forum, which will bring together entrepreneurs, senior managers, representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ representatives, academics and practitioners to discuss various aspects of the role of enterprises, governments, and employers’ and workers’ organizations in relation to job creation and other social objectives. There will be full tripartite consultation on the agenda of the second Forum, which could include subjects such as: job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises; the role of women entrepreneurs; and corporate social initiatives and training for employment.

Social dimensions of enterprise finance

65.7. Employment promotion and poverty reduction are not only constrained by poorly functioning labour markets, but also by imperfections in financial markets. Many potential entrepreneurs, as well as existing small enterprises, face serious difficulties in gaining access to the credit that would enable them to invest and create jobs. This is not because their investment proposals are not viable, but because the loans that they request are too small. Financial institutions generally prefer to deal with larger companies, since they consider small clients risky and the transaction costs too high. In addition, many women entrepreneurs face legal and cultural obstacles in applying for loans. To overcome such constraints, many small entrepreneurs have formed self-help organizations, such as savings and credit cooperatives, joint liability groups and mutual guarantee associations. In addition, many governments have intervened in the financial market, with mixed results, to improve the access of small enterprises to financial services through development banks and special loan and guarantee funds.

65.8. The objective of ILO activities in this area is the adoption by decision-makers in public and private institutions of policies and measures that improve the access of micro- and small enterprises to financial services. Issues to be kept under continuing study in support of the activities of the subprogramme will include the capacity of small-scale entrepreneurs to manage financial resources efficiently, the potential of self-help schemes to compensate for smallness of size and gender, the impact of financial sector liberalization on small-scale finance and the use of revolving funds and other credit mechanisms. Research findings on the effectiveness and sustainability of targeted delivery mechanisms, such as guarantee funds and other collateral substitutes, will be published and disseminated in the form of guidelines and policy recommendations. Some $2 million in extra-budgetary funding is expected to become available for technical cooperation activities to strengthen financial self-help organizations and test new delivery mechanisms.

Action programme

Social investments: Job creation through innovative financial instruments

65.9. Over the past decade, government efforts in many industrialized countries to reduce the numbers of the long-term unemployed do not appear to have had a significant impact. In this context there is a growing interest among policy-makers in initiatives aimed at assisting the long-term unemployed to help themselves. Such initiatives have recently been undertaken in several European and North American countries. The distinctive feature of these initiatives is the innovative manner in which funds are raised and allocated, building on partnerships between banks, self-help associations and local government agencies. While certain successful experiments (South Shore Bank in the United States, ADIE in France, Unity Trust Bank in the United Kingdom and Vancity in Canada, etc.), are well-known nationally, a systematic assessment of a comparative nature would be useful, to provide guidance for policy-makers on whether and how they could best support these initiatives, in concert with social partner organizations.

65.10. The objective of this action programme is to enhance the capacity of government agencies responsible for job creation policies and of employers’ and workers’ organizations to design and implement schemes of this type more extensively in countries with serious long-term unemployment problems. In particular, the action programme seeks to define ways of linking private bank credit to public job creation programmes and other active labour market measures. The assessment of successful experiences and of the conditions which have led to success will address the following issues: the importance of the initiatives in terms of the employment generated; the sustainability of the micro-enterprises that have been created; the question of substitution for or complementarity with public job creation programmes; the sustainability of the initiatives themselves; and the implications for commercial banks. The assessment will be supported by a number of case studies, leading to a synthesis report. The action programme will be carried out in close cooperation with the European Union and the OECD. The materials produced will be used in the provision of advisory services by the ILO’s multidisciplinary advisory teams to Ministries of Labour, the social partners and financial institutions.

65.2. Entrepreneurship and management development

65.11. Most new jobs have to be created by the private sector, and particularly by small and medium-sized enterprises, including micro-enterprises in the informal sector. However, in many industrialized, transition and developing countries, the necessary conditions do not exist to enable the private sector to act as the engine of economic growth. Existing legislation and policies are often an obstacle to the efficient functioning of the market, and entrepreneurs face many constraints in terms of gaining access to credit, markets, technology, training and information.

65.12. The objective of this programme is the design and implementation by member States of the appropriate policies and programmes to overcome these constraints through: the creation of an environment that facilitates the establishment and growth of private enterprises; the promotion of cost-effective and sustainable small enterprise support organizations; the design and implementation of entrepreneurship training programmes; the adoption of policies to upgrade informal sector enterprises and promote their integration into the structured economy; and the promotion of enterprise competitiveness, productivity and social responsibility, especially in the context of enterprise restructuring. This objective will be achieved through a combination of direct advisory services, technical cooperation programmes, the development of guidelines and manuals for use by the multidisciplinary advisory teams and constituents, the dissemination of information through meetings, publications and electronic means, as well as action-oriented research and action programmes on small and medium-sized enterprise development for employment and on productivity improvement, competitiveness and quality jobs.

65.13. As part of the ILO’s activities to follow up the World Summit for Social Development and in response to suggestions made by Governing Body members in November 1996, steps will be taken to mobilize resources for a major new ILO technical cooperation programme, the International Small Enterprise Programme (ISEP). These resources will be sought from bilateral donors, the European Union, the development banks, private foundations and large enterprises. The objective of ISEP, in the implementation of which account will be taken of the Conference discussions in 1997 and 1998 on “General conditions to stimulate job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises”, will be the generation of quality jobs by small enterprises in developing and transition countries. At the national level ISEP will work with entrepreneurs, government agencies, employers’ and workers’ organizations and other interested non-governmental organizations as well as universities and business schools. ISEP will promote networking at the national, regional and interregional levels and promote links between small enterprises and large, export-oriented enterprises. It will also encourage the use of existing ILO materials such as Start Your Business (SYB), Improve Your Business (IYB) and Work Improvements in Small Enterprises (WISE) and adapt them to the needs of small enterprises in each country. ISEP will pay particular attention to the special training needs of women entrepreneurs.

65.14. Extra-budgetary resources for the programme’s technical cooperation activities are expected to reach some $24 million during the biennium. RBTC funds will be used for advisory missions to respond to requests from constituents for assistance in the strengthening of national capacities for programme design and management, particularly in the field of small enterprise development.

Entrepreneurship and small enterprise development

65.15. Many micro- and small enterprise development programmes have a limited impact, especially when they are implemented in the absence of a legal and regulatory framework that is conducive to the growth of micro- and small enterprises. The employment potential of micro- and small enterprises is not therefore being realized in many countries. The objective of this subprogramme is the design and implementation, by policy-makers, employers’ and workers’ organizations and small enterprise support organizations, of integrated, cost-effective enterprise development programmes which facilitate the creation of sustainable jobs in micro- and small enterprises in both the formal and informal sectors.

65.16. This objective will be achieved mainly through the provision of advisory services and support to technical cooperation projects. These activities will continue to focus on policy and regulatory issues, small enterprise support services and the development of entrepreneurial skills. Emphasis will continue to be placed on introducing and promoting the worldwide use of the Improve Your Business (IYB), Start Your Business (SYB) and related training packages, which have proved to be cost-effective means of providing small entrepreneurs with basic managerial skills. A start will also be made in introducing the distance and mass media training materials for entrepreneurship training developed during the biennium 1996-97. Care will be taken to ensure that international labour standards, particularly those on working conditions, occupational safety and health and child labour, are taken into account in micro- and small enterprise development programmes. In line with the recommendations of the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995), special attention will be paid to the provision of support for women entrepreneurs. As recommended by the World Summit for Social Development (1995), support will also be provided for technical cooperation activities specifically designed to help vulnerable groups, such as the disabled and war-affected, to establish their own enterprises.

65.17. In the context of the ILO’s overall goal of the gradual integration of informal micro-enterprises into the formal economy, the issue of productivity and competitiveness of micro-sector enterprises will be addressed on a sectoral basis. Activities will also continue to be undertaken to encourage the extension of social protection to informal sector workers and to improve their working conditions. These activities will apply the methodology developed by the 1994-95 interdepartmental project on the informal sector implemented in the biennium 1994-95, which is being tested in several countries during the biennium 1996-97. Research will also be undertaken on the access of micro-enterprises to private consulting services, measures to make integration into the formal sector more attractive to micro-enterprises and on facilitating the access of micro-enterprises to electronic information networks. The findings of this research will be made available to constituents and other interested organizations in printed and electronic form.

Action programme

Small and medium-sized enterprise development for employment

65.18. Economic reform programmes in the industrialized, transition and developing economies now accord an important role to enterprises with respect to growth of output and employment. In this context there has been an increasing recognition of the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in job creation strategies. Available evidence shows that SMEs already account for most of the new jobs being created in both developed and developing countries, even in circumstances where policies and the legal and regulatory framework are not entirely conducive to the development of such enterprises.

65.19. The objective of this action programme is the adoption of policies and implementation of programmes aimed at the creation of sustainable and productive jobs in SMEs within the wider framework of national comprehensive employment promotion programmes. The action programme is designed to consolidate and expand current ILO activities in this area through the development of an integrated approach to SME promotion. Guidelines and training and promotional materials to support the development and sustainability of viable SMEs will be developed for use by the multidisciplinary advisory teams and ILO constituents. These materials will address the key elements of a strategy to promote efficient and competitive SMEs, the need for a favourable legal and regulatory framework, the mobilization of domestic resources for investments in SMEs, sound industrial relations, decent working conditions, job security and fair treatment for employees. Existing materials, such as Start Your Business (SYB) and Improve Your Business (IYB), will also be adapted to improve advisory services and technical assistance to ILO constituents in connection with business opportunity identification and a better understanding of the functioning of the market economy. Through these activities, the action programme will promote partnerships between governments and the private sector for the creation of productive and freely chosen employment, especially in the SMEs and the informal sector, thereby making an important contribution to the achievement of one of the ILO’s three priority objectives, namely poverty alleviation through employment creation. It will be implemented in cooperation with major programmes 90 (Working Conditions and Environment), 225 (Employers’ Activities) and 230 (Workers’ Activities).

65.20. Many of the measures called for in the Platform for Action of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development to enhance employment opportunities for women emphasize entrepreneurship development. Millions of women at all income levels in developing, transition and industrialized countries are setting up enterprises. But, as the United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women has noted, although women entrepreneurs can be found in all sectors, many work in commerce and services, and in low growth products and markets. Many women begin their enterprises to survive, and need to build their confidence, financial management, technical capabilities, and marketing links if they are to grow. With large organizations all over the world scaling down and traditional wage employment declining, the role of women in smaller firms is becoming increasingly significant.

65.21. To address this issue the action programme will assist women entrepreneurs in moving from survival-type, income-generation, self-employment or micro-enterprise level activities to the operation and management of viable, growth-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises that are able to provide productive employment to other women and men. In particular, the action programme will review and evaluate the IYB and SYB programmes in selected developing and transition countries in order to: determine their effectiveness in enabling women to become successful entrepreneurs and to improve their gender relevance; identify the differences in constraints and needs of women entrepreneurs in developing, transition and industrialized countries, including the potential for such women to not only expand their businesses but also to create employment for others; examine programmes for women entrepreneurs developed by other agencies and by women entrepreneurs associations in middle income and industrialized countries to draw conclusions for the ILO’s work in this field for women; and give special attention to the policy and programme measures and institutional arrangements needed to assist women entrepreneurs to seize new business opportunities.

65.22. The main outputs of the action programme in this context will include: more effective training packages for employment generation through entrepreneurship development (including IYB and SYB), that are gender-sensitive and adapted to meet the needs of women entrepreneurs in developing, transition and industrialized countries; guidelines on policies and programmes to enable women to successfully own and manage viable and expanding businesses, including access to productive resources, participation in economic decision-making, ensuring institutional and marketing support, awareness raising and networking with professional, employers’ and workers’ organizations; and pamphlets and brochures designed to draw attention to the potential for women entrepreneurs to become successful employers and to encourage them into new areas of business.

Management development and productivity

65.23. In order to stay competitive, enterprises of all sizes, from micro to large, in both the public and private sectors, need to continuously adapt their management and production processes to technological transformation, economic globalization and deregulation. In particular they need to raise productivity by ensuring that the workforce is flexible and innovative. In addition, enterprises are under pressure from consumers to demonstrate corporate responsibility by operating in an environmentally friendly way and producing quality goods and services while observing basic international labour standards and becoming socially involved in the community. These management challenges can only be dealt with effectively if they are clearly understood by both managers and workers at the enterprise level.

65.24. The objective of this subprogramme is the enhanced capacity of member States to assist enterprises to adapt to changes and pressures in the external environment and to promote social responsibility. Taking account of the fact that its human resources are the most important asset in any enterprise, research will be carried out and advisory services provided on such issues as human resource management, workers’ participation in problem-solving and changes in the work environment, employment security, the equitable sharing of productivity gains, proper safety and health conditions and other measures which may lead to competitive advantage for the enterprise by enhancing its workers’ commitment and building a relation of trust between workers and employers. In order to follow up the action programme on privatization, restructuring and economic democracy undertaken during the biennium 1996-97, emphasis will be placed on identifying management practices that reflect the need for increased convergence between economic and social concerns. As recommended by the World Summit for Social Development, activities will be carried out to encourage cooperation between employers and workers in the sharing of profits and in enterprise decisions. Guidelines and other training materials will be produced on this subject for use at the enterprise level and in training activities for government officials, employers’ and workers’ organizations and management specialists.

Action programme

Productivity improvement, competitiveness and quality jobs in developing countries

65.25. Productivity enhancement is crucial for increasing the competitiveness of enterprises, and thereby taking advantage of the opportunities for expansion of national output and trade provided by globalization. The issue of productivity improvement has therefore assumed increasing importance in national economic policy with globalization, mainly on account of its impact on the competitiveness of enterprises in both the domestic and international markets. Although globalization provides opportunities for growth of output and trade through increased competitiveness, it is important for these countries to develop the capacity to pursue strategies to improve competitiveness of local-based enterprises in domestic and global markets. This requires the active participation of the main social partners and stakeholders, particularly employers’ and workers’ organizations, to support a favourable climate of industrial relations.

65.26. This action programme will therefore focus on policy interventions at the enterprise and macro levels designed to develop human resources and improve institutional capacity in the context of strategies for increasing competitiveness. Attention will also be paid to measures specifically designed: to encourage investment in new and more efficient technologies; to ensure the existence of an appropriate and legal and regulatory framework that is conducive to private sector investment, including the mobilization of domestic resources; and to promote labour market flexibility. Such strategies would emphasize the need to improve total factor productivity (i.e. the efficient utilization of all productive inputs including energy and natural resources), as well as labour and capital productivity. This approach would contribute to the development of enterprises that are responsive to changing socio-economic circumstances, as well as environmentally friendly.

65.27. The objective of this action programme is the adoption of strategies to improve national competitiveness at the enterprise level, and thereby facilitate integration of concerned countries into the global economy on the basis of their comparative advantages and trade expansion. An interregional comparative analysis will be undertaken of successful experiences in a selected number of developing countries where competitiveness has been a major factor in promoting and sustaining a rapid economic growth characterized inter alia by the expansion of output and trade and the progressive shift of production from low value-added to higher value-added exports. The analysis will take into account the relevance of macro and international economic policy issues in formulating strategies to enhance national competitiveness, by focusing on issues such as skills upgrading, the adoption of better management practices; technological innovation and diffusion; and the linkages between large, medium-sized and small enterprises. Taking account of the findings of this analysis, guidelines will be produced for use by the ILO’s multidisciplinary advisory teams in the provision of advisory services to the countries concerned.

65.3. Hotels and tourism

65.28. Although employment levels in the hotels and tourism sector continue to increase in countries at all levels of development, the full employment potential of the sector has not yet been achieved in most countries. Growth in the sector is often hindered by a lack of institutional support and training, particularly in the case of small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for most of the employment in the industry. Working conditions in the sector, which employs considerable numbers of migrants, women and young workers, are often difficult, while many workers are employed under precarious conditions or seasonal contracts and as a result have limited bargaining power.

65.29. The objective of the programme is the design and implementation in member States of policies and programmes to promote productive, sustainable and decent employment in enterprises in the hotels and tourism sector. This objective will be achieved through the provision of advisory services and support for technical cooperation projects, including projects for the creation and strengthening of small-scale tourism enterprises. In these activities special attention will be paid to improving the working and employment conditions of vulnerable workers, such as migrants, women and young workers. Emphasis will be placed on promoting the ratification of the Working Conditions (Hotels and Restaurants) Convention, 1991 (No.172), and on activities to follow up the Tripartite Meeting on the Effects of New Technologies on Employment and Working Conditions in the Hotel, Catering and Tourism Sector, to be held in May 1997. In the advisory services that are provided, emphasis will be placed on strengthening tripartite involvement in sectoral training delivery systems. Relations will be maintained with other international organizations active in the sector, such as the World Tourism Organization.

65.4. Cooperatives

65.30. Cooperatives are generally recognized as potentially effective means of generating employment and income. They are important actors in certain sectors of industrialized economies, such as agricultural marketing, consumer retailing and banking. At a time when state enterprises are being privatized and restructured and the role of the State in economic life is diminishing, cooperative enterprises, especially in agriculture and agro-industry, are well placed to provide sustainable employment for large numbers of people. In many developing countries and in most countries in transition, cooperatives used to benefit from official subsidies and other privileges, such as monopolies. This is no longer the case and cooperatives need to adapt to an increasingly competitive market if they are to survive as viable economic enterprises. At the same time, they have to shed their negative image as largely governmental institutions and they need to prove that they are independent, competitive, democratic and socially responsible enterprises. However, in many developing countries, where they could play an important role in combating poverty, and in countries in transition, where they could produce goods and services that are no longer considered the responsibility of the State, cooperatives have often been unable to realize this potential because of continued government intervention in their operations and the lack of human resources trained in cooperative principles and practice.

65.31. The objective of this programme is the establishment and development of viable and self-reliant cooperatives and similar participatory economic self-help organizations of small producers, consumers, workers and the self-employed, and the development of supporting structures to assist them to manage their associations and economic undertakings efficiently, effectively and democratically. This objective will continue to be achieved through the provision of technical advisory services and support for technical cooperation activities, supplemented by the collection and dissemination of information. The activities of the programme will focus on the following six major themes: cooperative reform, cooperative training networking, poverty alleviation, cooperative support to indigenous and tribal peoples, cooperative trade and cooperative social services based on the principle of mutuality.

65.32. Most of the extra-budgetary resources for the technical cooperation activities of this programme are expected to be contributed from multibilateral sources, including the ILO/DANIDA programme. In addition, RBTC resources and SPPD and STS resources from UNDP will be used to respond to requests from constituents for short-term technical advisory services on cooperative policy, legislation and reform. Provision is made under this programme for continued cooperation with the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) and ILO participation in the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC), which has been instrumental in coordinating cooperative development policy in developing and transition countries and in promoting the interest and commitment of the United Nations system to cooperative approaches to democratization and development.

65.33. For cooperatives to become more self-reliant and make a more effective contribution to the process of democratization, cooperative legislation has to foster the participation of cooperative members, lay the basis for democratic self-management and control and strengthen the independence of cooperative movements. The major principles guiding democratic cooperative action at the national and international levels are set out in the Cooperatives (Developing Countries) Recommendation, 1966 (No.127). Support will be provided to member States, particularly those in the process of structural adjustment or in transition from a state-controlled to a market-oriented economy, to assist in the formulation of coherent cooperative development policies and to update cooperative legislation. This constitutes a particular challenge in countries in transition, where prejudices against formerly state-controlled cooperative enterprises have to be overcome in order to develop genuine, democratic cooperatives. These activities will take into account the conclusions and recommendations of the International Meeting of Experts on Cooperative Law, held in May 1995, and will be supplemented by the programme’s extensive database of cooperative laws and bylaws, which is constantly maintained and updated.

65.34. Assistance will continue to be provided for the establishment and expansion of networks of cooperative training institutions with a view to strengthening human resources development in cooperatives and their support organizations and sensitizing policy-makers. The resulting exchange of experience and knowledge assists these institutions to train cooperative trainers, managers and members more efficiently, not only in basic cooperative principles, but also in business management.

65.35. In the context of the programme’s poverty alleviation activities, the use of the participatory methodologies developed by the ACOPAM programme in West Africa and the INDISCO programme in Asia will continue to be promoted. Designed to strengthen national capacities for the promotion and implementation of sustainable grassroots social and economic development activities in rural areas, the ACOPAM programme has been most successful in helping its beneficiaries achieve food security and manage the natural resources at their disposal in an environmentally friendly manner. It has also played an important role in setting up cooperative marketing services to replace state marketing boards. In support of the application of the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No.169), the INDISCO programme adopts a cooperative approach to the development of indigenous and tribal communities with maximum community participation. The activities covered by the INDISCO programme include skill training for employment, income-generation schemes (particularly for women), the improvement of basic infrastructure, the alleviation of the effects of involuntary displacement, the management of natural resources and the protection of the environment in areas inhabited by indigenous and tribal peoples.

65.36. In many developing countries, agricultural producers do not reap the full benefits of their work since, as individual small-scale producers, they do not have access to consumer markets in industrialized countries. With a view to expanding the export opportunities of producers who are organized in marketing cooperatives, activities will continue to be undertaken for the promotion of commercial exchanges, business partnerships and the exchange of know-how between cooperative producer organizations, particularly in Africa, and cooperative consumer organizations, mainly in Europe.

65.37. In line with the recommendations of the World Summit for Social Development, activities will be intensified for the development of undertakings organized on a mutual basis to provide social services in such areas as social security, education, health and housing. Support will be provided for technical cooperation activities designed to increase the efficiency and coverage of existing mutual self-help organizations through training and networking arrangements.

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