The African forum on the social economy ends with the promise of a people-centred economy
The first edition of the African Forum on the Social Solidarity Economy (FORA'ESS 2024) was held in Cameroon from 29 to 30 May 2024, under the theme "African models of the social solidarity economy: towards the co-construction of a human economy rooted in the territories".
YAOUNDE (ILO Infos) - This landmark event brought together nearly 1,500 participants from 32 African countries and around the world, including government representatives, social and solidarity economy (SSE) players, civil society organisations, employers, workers, researchers and academics.
FORA'ESS 2024 was co-organised by Cameroon's Ministry of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Social Economy and Handicrafts, the Global Social Economic Forum - Africa, the NGO Partenariat France - Cameroun, the National Network for the Social Solidarity Economy, and the Network of Mayors for the Social Solidarity Economy, with technical and financial support from the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
Over the two days of the forum, various workshops, self-managed sessions and thematic plenary sessions explored a variety of subjects: African models for structuring the SSE, social and solidarity-based entrepreneurship for young people and women, capacity-building for players, social innovation, research and training in the SSE, governance and financing of the SSE, mutual health organisations and the role of international organisations in promoting the SSE.
The Ministers' round table on 29 May featured the participation of Mr Claude Yao Kouame, Director of the ILO in Yaoundé, who recalled the ILO's commitment to supporting cooperatives for over a century. He stressed the importance of the Resolution on Decent Work and the Social Solidarity Economy adopted at the 110th session of the International Labour Conference in June 2022. Guiding principles were shared to guide States in their commitments to SSE: international labour standards, social dialogue, gender equality and non-discrimination, complementarity between SSE entities and other enterprises, contextualisation and adaptability of actions.
On 30 May, the ILO led the plenary session of international organisations on the theme ‘What favourable ecosystem to enable the SSE to make a greater contribution to achieving the SDGs? This session, moderated by Mr Rodrigue Raoul Zuchuon, Specialist in sustainable business development and job creation, ILO Yaoundé with support from Mr Guy Tchami, Cooperative policy and research specialist, ILO Geneva, saw the participation of key figures such as Ms Simel Esim of the ILO, Ms Chantal Line Carpentier of UNCTAD, Mr Erick Obongo of the International Co-operative Alliance - Africa, Mr Sabelo Mbokazi of the African Union Commission and Mr Ibrahima Ndour of the Pan-African Cooperative Conference.
On the fringes of FORA'ESS, the ILO hosted an exhibition stand showcasing its SSE and cooperative initiatives, in particular the ‘Women's empowerment for resilient economies and peaceful communities’ project in the East an
The forum concluded with several important declarations. The Youth Declaration committed African youth to creating national networks for SSE, with the aim of establishing an African Youth Network for SSE. The Mayors' Declaration urged local elected representatives to promote public policies favourable to the emergence and development of the SSE.
Finally, the Yaoundé Final Declaration, while paving the way for an inter-African mechanism for coordinating public policies on the SSE, recommends that ‘the Governments of African States set up National Councils or Agencies for the social and solidarity economy to ensure that political action is more visible and coordinated’.
Building on this success, the second edition of FORA'ESS will be held in 2026 in the Republic of Congo, continuing the momentum generated by the first edition to strengthen the social and solidarity economy across the African continent.