All news: cooperatives

International Year of Cooperatives

Measures to strengthen cooperatives and their role in sustainable development showcased at UN Headquarters

At a high-level event for the International Year of Cooperatives, governments, the ILO, and representatives of the cooperative movement shared recent policies, financing schemes and education initiatives, alongside new data and international...

UN Task Force on Social and Solidarity Economy invited to contribute to global roadmap for eradicating poverty beyond growth

At a time of what the UN Secretary-General has described as a “global development emergency”, the UN Task Force on Social and Solidarity Economy convened its 53rd Regular Meeting on 15 July 2025. The meeting addressed strategic alignment with major...

ILO-led expert groups advance harmonized statistical frameworks on cooperatives and the wider social and solidarity economy

ILO-led expert groups advance work on statistics of social and solidarity economy entities and measuring economic contributions of cooperatives, paving the way for future international statistical standards.

PROSPECTS Impact

Empowering enterprise: Refugees and hosts thrive with business support services in Kenya

A stronger Chambers of Commerce and targeted business training supported by the ILO are boosting small enterprises for refugees and host communities in Kenya’s Turkana and Garissa counties. With added mentorship and a digital marketplace,...

International Year of Cooperatives

Chile certifies 14 new trainers on ILO Think.COOP and Start.COOP methodologies for aquaculture

The ILO played a key technical role, ensuring methodological consistency, providing ongoing assistance and coordinating efforts with national actors to consolidate a network of trainers specialising in aquaculture cooperatives.

Social and solidarity economy

ILO champions the social solidarity economy at the Caribbean World of Work Forum 2025

The Caribbean World of Work Forum 2025, organized by the Cipriani College of Labour and Co-operative Studies, highlighted the vital role of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) in shaping a just and inclusive future of work in the region. With...

Advancing statistical frameworks of cooperatives and the wider social and solidarity economy: ILO presents progress at global research...

The ILO participated in the International Cooperative Alliance Committee on Cooperative Research (ICA CCR) Global Research Conference 2025, delving into the future of cooperatives in times of geopolitical changes, presenting progress in ILO-led...

Cooperatives

ILO and partners present roadmap to strengthen rural cooperatives and advance formalization of the rural economy in Chile

Cooperatives

Peru certifies extension officers in methodologies to strengthen cooperatives in aquaculture

More than 20 professionals from the Directorate-General of Aquaculture of the Ministry of Production in Peru have been certified as trainers in the ILO’s Think.Coop and Start.Coop methodologies.

Lebanon’s private-sector labour market severely disrupted by conflict

ILO assessment highlights employment losses, business closures and long-term recovery challenges for both workers and enterprises.

International Day of Cooperatives

Cooperatives: Collective solutions for a just and sustainable future

On the International Day of Cooperatives 2025, ILO Director-General Gilbert F. Houngbo highlights the vital role cooperatives play in advancing social justice, decent work, and economic resilience. As the world faces major transitions, cooperatives...

Op-Ed

Cooperatives in the Caribbean: A proven path to decent work and sustainable development

Cooperatives are helping Caribbean communities tackle climate change, economic uncertainty, and inequality by creating decent jobs and strengthening local economies.

Global webinar spotlights innovative approaches to addressing informality through the social and solidarity economy

The ILO–WIEGO joint webinar highlighted the role of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) in addressing informality, drawing on ILO standards and resolutions. It featured country cases from Argentina, Colombia, India and Nigeria, and explored how...

Türkiye explores the role of cooperatives in an emerging care economy

A dedicated session on the role of care cooperatives under an ILO-UNDP joint initiative highlighted their potential to provide quality care services and decent work opportunities in Türkiye.

Inclusive solidarity

Social and solidarity economy entities deliver inclusive, community-driven care solutions

The ILO webinar highlights country experiences and practical tools to advance gender-responsive care services through the social and solidarity economy.

When hope becomes a way forward

When disaster strikes, recovery is about more than just rebuilding what was lost; it's also about sustaining livelihoods and building resilience. In the northern mountainous region of Viet Nam, decent work is paving the way forward for local...

Spotlight Interviews with Co-operators

Interview with Yoshiteru Yoneoka, Director of Worker Cooperative Office, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan

“Spotlight Interviews with Co-operators” is a series of interviews with co-operators and other social and solidarity economy actors from around the world with whom ILO officials have crossed paths during the course of their work on cooperatives and...

Annual Forum of the Global Coalition for Social Justice

The human rights economy: Global Coalition partners highlight the role of the social and solidarity economy

Partners highlighted the social and solidarity economy (SSE) as a key driver of decent work, social justice and the human rights economy at a high-level event during the Global Coalition for Social Justice Annual Forum.

PROSPECTS Impact

Empowered with ILO’s training, women farmers in Sudan expand cooperative and market opportunities

An ILO-supported initiative is equipping 1,000 displaced and host community women in White Nile State with practical agricultural skills, cooperative development training, and access to markets.

Arizmendiarrieta Social Economy Think Tank Forum

ILO highlights transformative power of the social and solidarity economy at a global forum in Spain

The ILO participated in the first Forum of the Arizmendiarrieta Social Economy Think Tank (ASETT), emphasizing the role of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) in contributing to decent work, social justice, and inclusive development. It...