Coopératives et sécurité alimentaire
Les coopératives,
au Nord comme au Sud, dans les domaines de l'agriculture, la transformation, la
vente en gros et au détail, la pêche, l'épargne et le crédit et dans tous les
autres secteurs, contribuent à la sécurité alimentaire mondiale; elles sont en
effet de par le monde des acteurs essentiels dans un grand nombre de marchés
vivriers. On estime qu'environ un tiers de tous les produits alimentaires et de
toutes les boissons sont commercialisés et transformés par des entreprises
coopératives. Les organisations membres de l'Alliance coopérative internationale
(ACI) ont aussi, dans le programme Action 21 des coopératives, énoncé une ligne
d'action pour la sécurité alimentaire et le développement agricole
durable.
Il est donc important de reconnaître que les coopératives jouent à l'échelle mondiale un rôle essentiel en ce qui concerne la sécurité alimentaire. Toutefois, comme les pénuries et la faim touchent essentiellement des pays en développement, cet article met en lumière le rôle des coopératives pour la sécurité alimentaire dans les pays du tiers monde en soulignant la contribution des coopératives de commercialisation agricole.
Las cooperativas y la seguridad alimentaria
Todas las
cooperativas que, tanto en el norte como en el sur del mundo, desarrollan su
actividad en la producción agrícola, la elaboración, la venta al por mayor y al
por menor, la pesca, el ahorro y préstamo y otros sectores, brindan un aporte
importante a la seguridad alimentaria global. En todo el mundo las cooperativas
juegan un papel protagónico en muchos mercados alimentarios: se calcula que del
total de productos alimenticios y bebidas, aproximadamente un tercio es
comercializado y elaborado por empresas cooperativas. Las organizaciones que
forman parte de la Alianza Cooperativa Internacional (ACI) también han
establecido, mediante su Programa 21 de Cooperativas, unas directrices para las
actividades relacionadas con la seguridad alimentaria y el desarrollo agrícola
sostenible.
En vista de que el hambre y la escasez de alimentos son más agudos en los países en desarrollo, en este artículo se destacará el papel de las cooperativas en la seguridad alimentaria del tercer mundo, y se examinará en particular la contribución de las cooperativas que se ocupan de comercializar productos agrícolas.
Secretariat of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA)
Cooperatives in the North as well as in the South within the agricultural, processing, wholesale and retail, fisheries, savings and credit and other sectors all contribute to global food security; in fact cooperatives worldwide are major actors in many food markets. It is estimated that approximately one-third of all food stuffs and drinks are marketed and processed by cooperative enterprises. Member organizations of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) have also, through their Cooperative Agenda 21, laid down action
guidelines for food security and sustainable agricultural development.
As indicated above, it is important to recognize that, globally, cooperatives are major performers with regard to food security. However, given the fact that food scarcity and hunger are most pronounced in developing countries, this article highlights the role of cooperatives in food security in the Third World, with a focus on the contribution made by agricultural marketing cooperatives.
Many actors are involved in the process to improve food security: governments and their various departments and institutions, farmers, the NGO community, the private business sector (including the cooperatives) and local authorities, just to mention the most central. In order to ensure an optimum and sustainable effect of government policies and plans, the farmers must be actively involved. Mechanisms and organizational structures need to be in place so that effective partnership relations can be established between governments and farmers. This is well recognized by the World Food Summit Plan of Action, which states that economic and social organizations of the rural population should be fostered. Agricultural cooperatives are, together with the much smaller number of farmer unions, the true representatives of farmers and, with their organizational structures from local to national levels, they can therefore effectively engage governments and other actors in a partnership dialogue at all levels.
The dialogue with governments and others can, and already does, include a number of issues, such as policy and legislation and regulatory frameworks for food production and marketing. An example of a partnership needed to secure the participation of farmers is in agricultural research and extension, which has not yet been sufficiently developed. Research and extension are vital elements for sustainable agricultural production and, therefore, for food security. It is well known that it is essential for farmers to be given the opportunity to participate in this work, thereby contributing to a much needed demand-driven form of research and extension. This is hardly the case today and, had government research institutions and extension departments recognized this in the past, involving the farmers in their cooperative organizations, agricultural practices and food production would most likely have been more effective.
Perhaps the most obvious and direct contribution made by cooperatives to food security happens to be the core function of agricultural cooperatives, i.e. marketing. Cooperatives buy food and non-food agricultural produce from the farmers, store it, in many cases process it and, finally, market it. For millions of farmers in the Third World, this is the essential service required to enable them to be part of the monetary economy, thus ensuring their own food security as well as contributing to the same for the non-producers who are dependent on the market. Most agricultural cooperatives also provide agricultural inputs and implements to their members, which is another essential service for improved and increased agricultural production.
Cooperatives do not only market food produced by those farmers who would also be attractive to other actors on the market, but they also market the produce of farmers in remote and marginal areas and of those who have only small volumes to sell - farmers who might be considered too marginal by an investor-driven market agent. If there is no demand for their products, marginal farmers will not produce a surplus. Thus, by purchasing their products, cooperatives include marginal producers in the monetary economy. This is a very important and direct contribution to food security for vulnerable groups, and at the same time it increases the volume of food on the market.
There are also important societal aspects of the agricultural cooperative movements in developing world countries. First, when seen from a national perspective, food supply can be sufficient, but this does not guarantee food security for all. Hunger is not necessarily caused by a general shortage of food, it is also caused by inadequate marketing mechanisms and faulty distribution between rich and poor. Food can be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Furthermore, we will see an increasing share of the rural population engaged in the non-agricultural sector. The retention of food surpluses within a region is therefore becoming increasingly important. In fact, it is argued that surplus retention will need to be seen as one of the major elements in a strategy to develop non-agricultural production and services. Cooperatives, with their roots in the local community, have a better understanding of and are more willing to contribute to local surplus retention than many other operators on the market.
Second, increasing urbanization will mean that a growing section of the population in developing world countries, in absolute as well as relative numbers, will have to rely on the market for obtaining food. Markets will consequently have to increase capacity in order to cope with this increasing demand, it has been estimated that markets will have to grow by about 6 percent annually. At the same time, many of these markets are now being opened up and freed from government intervention and excessive regulation, as part of the liberalization of economies in the developing world. It is essential that these markets stay open, and the presence of the farmer-driven cooperatives will contribute to diversified and competitive markets securing a maximum return to the producers.
Empowerment of women and gender equality are important elements in achieving food security. While the attitude among men and women cooperators towards gender equality is basically a reflection of the prevailing attitude in the society at large, there are several examples of a growing awareness and realization that men will need to make room for women in the affairs of cooperatives. This is indeed of great relevance, since cooperatives are the most widespread form of organizational network in many rural areas, and they give women farmers a chance to enhance their income and economic independence as well as to contribute to food security. The growing awareness of the essential role that women play in agricultural production, food security and cooperative affairs is promoted by ICA through its development programme, and it is believed that this trend is not only irreversible, but will become even more pronounced in the future.
Finance cooperatives such as banks, insurance cooperatives, savings and credit cooperatives provide important services to agricultural cooperatives as well as to the individual producer. The provision of credit facilities is one of the most important services for the small-scale farmer if he or she is to increase agricultural productivity and food production in a sustainable manner. However, rural savings and credit cooperatives do not only provide various types of non-agricultural and production credit. They also give the farmers an opportunity to save money on a regular basis, thereby accumulating capital in the local community, as well as assisting the farmer in establishing a better organized and secure household economy. This also contributes indirectly to improved agriculture and food security.
Many agricultural cooperatives are now in a period of transition from government-controlled markets, often allowing cooperatives to have a monopoly for certain regulated crops, to open market conditions. Not having been exposed to competition before, the cooperatives are now restructuring themselves and adjusting to the new business environment. Some cooperatives will not be able to adapt and will therefore be eliminated by the competition. There are cases where cooperatives have lost the better part of their market share. On the other hand, there are many cooperative organizations that have managed to revitalize themselves by providing better services, improving their business performance and implementing organizational changes and mergers. This ongoing transformation will result in fewer but more efficient cooperatives, and it is not unlikely that new structures will emerge that are better adapted to market-oriented economies.
However, in order to emerge successfully as competitive business organizations on the new market, cooperatives will need an enabling environment. Such an environment will have to comprise a conducive cooperative policy and law as well as a framework to regulate the open market. This would not only put cooperatives on an equal footing with other market agents, but it would also enable them to contribute more to sustainable agricultural production and food security. Furthermore, if governments and cooperatives are equally willing to enter into a partnership in which the cooperatives are given a true participatory role, the inherent qualities of cooperatives, member-owned and member-governed organizations can be brought into full play for the cause of food security.
